


Singeplayer RPG

by nagichi_boop



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Anxiety Disorder, Bullying, Depression, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Haikyuu!! Manga Spoilers, Mental Health Issues, Self-Harm, Social Anxiety, Suicide
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:41:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 41,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24329707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nagichi_boop/pseuds/nagichi_boop
Summary: Kozume Kenma is a highly reserved individual who doesn’t have many friends, making him an easy target for bullies. As he suffers at their hands, his mental health begins to worsen. Even though there are people around him, he feels alone fighting the bosses of life, which leads him to wonder: Will he always be a solo player?
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji & Kozume Kenma, Fukunaga Shouhei & Kozume Kenma, Haiba Lev & Kozume Kenma, Hinata Shouyou & Kozume Kenma, Kozume Kenma & Kuroo Tetsurou, Kozume Kenma & Nekoma Volleyball Club, Kozume Kenma & Yaku Morisuke, Kozume Kenma & Yamamoto Taketora
Comments: 58
Kudos: 110





	1. New Save

The new school year had begun, but things were different now. Kenma was used to walking to school with his friend, Kuroo, but for the first time in years, he was left alone. 

The boy sluggishly hurled his bag over his shoulders and then walked down the stairs. He put his shoes on, then stood up and lingered at the door. His mother peered around the corner, hugging him from behind. 

“Kenma sweetie, I know you’re worried about not having anyone at school, but it’s okay. Just be yourself and I’m sure you’ll make friends in no time,” she said softly. 

Kenma timidly nodded. He didn’t agree with her words, but he knew she was just trying to ease his nerves. In all honesty, he just wanted to be invisible. He realised he probably wouldn’t be able to make friends, but that wasn’t his goal. To finish the school year, to be reunited with Kuroo in high school – that was his mission. 

‘How hard could that be?’, he thought to himself.

Kenma followed his usual route to school, stopping every so often to pet a cat along the way. He pointed his head down, allowing his hair to cover his face in order to keep his anxiety at bay. He walked to one side of the path, doing his best to stay out of the way and become as invisible as possible, though he couldn’t help but notice one or two sets of eyes looking at him, observing his movements. He opened his mouth to say something, then stopped and bit down on his lip once he realised he had no one with him.

He had finally arrived in front of his school. He stood there, raising his head up a little. What was once a familiar sight to him had now become a daunting structure that loomed over him, making him feel frightened. He took a small step back, then heard a gasp. He turned his head slowly to see a group of girls cowering in fear. He noticed their uniforms were that of freshmen students. Remembering his mother’s words, he slowly walked up to them, wanting to try and introduce himself and help them, but as he got closer, the girls panicked. 

“IT’S SADAKO!!” they collectively screamed before running past Kenma and towards the school. He stood there in shock, trying to figure out what just happened. He turned around, hoping to find what caused the girls to be so afraid, but he instead noticed that most of the nearby students were staring at him, murmuring to one another. Kenma grew anxious, then turned and quickly walked into the school, staring at his feet as he walked. 

‘So much for being invisible’, he thought to himself as he walked down the hallways. He found his classroom and opened the door, causing the once loud room to become silent. As he walked to claim the seat in the back corner, he noticed that, instead of his classmates energetically talking to one another, they were whispering to one another. He decided to try and ignore them and look out of the window. 

Suddenly the door opened and the teacher walked in behind a student. The boy pointed directly at Kenma. “Him! It was him!” The teacher then walked up to Kenma, which caused him to nervously sit up in his seat. 

“Kozume, I need to to come with me,” the teacher said sternly. Kenma shakily stood up from his desk, then followed behind the teacher, unsure of what was happening. As he was about to leave the class, he noticed the boy snickering and looking at Kenma, which made his stomach turn. 

He silently followed the teacher down the hallway, avoiding eye contact with all the students whispering to one another. Somehow it seemed that he had become popular, but not in a way that he could feel proud of. The teacher then stopped and knocked on the door. As Kenma looked up, he realised that they had ended up at the principal’s office. 

They entered and Kenma was told to sit down, so he did. He placed both hands on his knees in a fist, tilting his head down but looking up at the principal. The teacher stood behind him, making Kenma feel a bit claustrophobic. 

“Do you know why you’re here, Kozume?” the principal said in a menacing voice. Kenma quietly shook his head, causing the principal to lean forward. “You’re here because I’ve had many students tell me that you bullied three freshmen students outside of the school this morning.”

Kenma froze before speaking in a stuttered voice. “B-bullied?” The principals face became more tensed. 

“Apparently you thought it would be funny to make yourself look scary, so you tilted your head down to look like Sadako and walked towards those girls to terrify them.”

Kenma panicked. ‘This is all wrong, I was just trying to help!’ he thought to himself. He then started to speak, “No, that’s not what I was- “ The bell rang. 

“I suggest you take this student back to class with you, but please let me know if he causes any more trouble,” he said addressing the teacher. 

The rest of the school day seemed to drag out. Kenma barely listened to the lessons, trying to compose himself and recover from the chaotic events of the morning. As he walked down the hallway, he couldn’t help but notice all eyes were on him – students speaking of him, laughing at him, pointing at him. 

As he was about to go home, he realised that he hadn’t yet gone to the volleyball club. Even if he wasn’t friends with anyone the team, he was a senior now and he at least knew some of their phases. Besides, Kuroo would never forgive him if he decided to bail. 

He poked his head around the door of the gymnasium, and one of the other third years told Kenma to get his uniform on. Kenma quickly changed in the club room, then came back into the gymnasium. Something felt off, though. The first years introduced themselves, but somehow it felt like people weren’t focusing on that. The new captain pulled Kenma to one side. 

“Kozume, I’d like for you to be the ball boy.”

“The…ball boy? But…” Kenma paused, taking notice of the other boy’s stern expression. For the entire session, Kenma was forced to chase after balls, the rest of the team insulting him and chastising him for not acting fast enough. Kenma could barely keep up, but he figured it was just for the day and things would get better. 

When Kenma finally got home after what felt like an eternity, he threw himself face first onto his bed. He was about to pass out before he heard a familiar knock on the door. He twisted his head a little before Kuroo appeared from behind the door. 

“Hey Kenma!” he said, frantically waving his arm. He then sat down beside Kenma, then his face shifted from enthusiasm to a curious look. “Hey, are you okay? You look kind of wrecked.”

Kenma buried his head back into his pillow. He then realised he couldn’t have Kuroo know what happened at volleyball practice, so he turned himself over onto his back. 

“I’m fine, Kuro. I’m just a bit tired.” Kuroo then placed the back of his hand on Kenma’s forehead, causing him to flinch. 

“Kenma, you’re burning up. Did you go overboard at practice?”

Kenma pouted a little. “The captain this year is just a little more demanding. It’s fine.”

Kuroo looked at Kenma with a concerned expression. “You sure you’re okay?”

Kenma nodded. ‘I can’t tell Kuro what really happened. If I do, he’d get mad at me. Besides, it’s really no big deal. I’m sure things will get better in a few days - I just had a bad start.’

Things got worse. 

Kenma became known as “Sadako” at school, causing him to be isolated from every other student, to the point where he had to do group projects alone. In the club, Kenma was still the ball boy, being forced to work harder than anyone else and being the target of ridicule. 

But if that wasn’t bad enough, he also started to get bullied. At first, it was silly things like insulting him for liking games, but it gradually evolved into more devious attacks, like throwing his workbooks into a pond or throwing things at him. But in order to avoid standing out or worsening the abuse, he kept quiet, keeping the bullying a secret, not just from school faculty, but also from his family and Kuroo. 

As the school year came to a close, the bullying got severely more harsh, likely out of desperation from the bullies to use Kenma as much as they could. They started to demand that Kenma give them money, and so each morning, he would take a small amount from his parents without asking. The amount the bullies demanded slowly increased, making Kenma’s actions more noticeable to his parents. When he was confronted about it, Kenma made the excuse that he and Kuroo would use that money for snacks when they’d hang out after school. Since he seemed well intentioned, his parents gave him an allowance each week, thinking he would use it when he spent time with Kuroo. But that all came crumbling down when Kenma’s mother mentioned it in conversation to Kuroo, who denied the whole thing, causing the payments to be stopped. 

When the bullies stopped receiving their money, they grew violent, pushing Kenma to the floor, pulling his hair, spitting on him. But one day stood out more than any other. 

“Let me guess, Sadako. You don’t have any money for us, do you?” 

Kenma shook his head fearfully, assuming he’d know what would happen next. The boy grabbed Kenma by his collar, lifting him from the floor to his feet and slamming him against the wall. 

“Why have you stopped paying us? Don’t tell me your wasting your money on those dumb video games!”

Kenma responded in a shaky voice. “No, I already told you, my mother-“

The boy then moved his hand from Kenma’s shirt to his neck, choking Kenma a little. “Shut up! I didn’t say you could talk back, did I?”

The boy looked at Kenma’s terrified face, before smirking at Kenma evilly. “I think I know just how to incentivise you to do as you’re told.”

Using his free hand, he pulled something from out of his pocket. He then began to crank it, causing a blade to appear. 

‘A crafting knife?’ Kenma thought, his body beginning to tremble. 

In an instant, the boy lifted his hand, then quickly dashed the blade across Kenma’s cheek, releasing his grip and causing the injured boy to fall to his knees screaming and holding his right cheek in pain. 

The school bell rang. The bully towered over Kenma, then leaned over above him, his face growing dark. “Bring me that money or I’ll give you more than just a scratched cheek.” He then turned and walked away, leaving Kenma shivering in the floor. 

Kenma snuck into the closest bathroom he could find, locking himself in a cubicle and pressing toilet paper against his bleeding cheek, his body trembling from the shock of what happened. He slowly regained his composure bit by bit, replacing the toilet paper every now and then once the current one was covered in blood, until eventually it stopped bleeding. 

Even after the final bell rang, Kenma remained in the bathroom cubicle, his knees up to his chest as he buried his head in his arms. He waited a while for the bustle of students to die down, then he left the bathrooms and headed to the classroom to grab his stuff. He wandered into the nurses office, and since no one was inside, he crept in and took a bandage, applying it to his injured cheek.

He then walked home, his mind flooding with thoughts and fears about what might happen tomorrow. Once he got home, his parents enquired about Kenma’s being late home and the bandage on his cheek, but he made excuses, saying that he practice ran late and he got attacked by a cat on the way home. He walked up to his room, then sat on his bed, curling up into a ball and began to quietly cry into his arms. An intense anxiety grew in his chest, eventually causing him to run to the toilet and puke. His mother came rushing upstairs, but as Kenma went to stand up and go to his room, he collapsed into his mother’s arms. 

He woke up a few hours later, with Kuroo sat beside his bed. He looked at Kuroo, then down to his hand, which was being tightly gripped by his friend. The boy’s face lit up as Kenma slowly opened his eyes. 

“Kenma, you’re awake! Thank goodness! I came over since no one was at home today, but when I came to your house, your mother said that you had thrown up and were upstairs with a fever.”

Kenma averted his gaze from Kuroo, feeling too ashamed to look at his friend in the eyes. “Sorry Kuroo. I know it’s been a while since we’ve been able to practice together…”

“I don’t care about that right now! I just want you to get better. You’ve been getting sick more and more recently. I know you said everything was okay, but are you sure the other players on the team aren’t pushing you too hard or something?”

Kenma shook his head. “I’m fine, Kuro, don’t worry. It’s just a little fever. I’ll be back on my feet in no time,” he said in a weak voice. 

Kuroo reached into his bag. “I don’t know if you’re feeling up to it, but I bought some apple pie on my way home. If you don’t want it you can say no, but your mother said that you should eat something if you can.”

He broke the corner of the pie off, then offered it to Kenma. In his feverish state, all Kenma could manage to do was open his mouth, so Kuroo placed the small piece of pie into this mouth. Kenma chewed it for a while before swallowing, but when Kuroo offered him more, he turned his head away and said he was beginning to feel sick again. Kuroo remained by Kenma’s side for the rest of the evening, before his father texted him to say he was home. 

School was set to end in a few weeks, but Kenma did not get any better. His overwhelming anxiety and fear kept him from getting better, and before he knew it, the school year had ended. Thankfully, his attendance was high enough that he did not have to repeat a year. It felt as though a weight had lifted off of Kenma’s shoulders as he realised he wouldn’t have to be subject to the bullying anymore. But somehow, Kenma still felt an uneasiness in his chest that he couldn’t seem to get rid of. A cloud of anxiety hovered over him, never letting him have a second of peace. 

The break was quickly over. He woke up, walking towards the mirror and gently placing his hand on his cheek. It had been months since the incident, and a scar had now formed on Kenma’s face. He continued to bandage it up, saying that he kept picking the wound open and that’s why he needed to cover it, when in actuality he was ashamed of the mark, disgusted even. 

Kenma got his stuff ready, then said goodbye to his mother. He waited outside of his house for Kuroo, who then walked with him to school. Despite his nerves, Kenma managed to plaster his face with a fake smile.

It didn’t take very long before they arrived at the school as they went by train. Kuroo and Kenma stood outside of the gates for a moment, taking it in. 

“Well, here we are, Kenma – welcome to Nekoma High!” 

Clutching his shirt, Kenma took a deep breath. He looked up at the school with a outwardly determined look on his face, though on the inside, he was trying not to fall apart. He exhaled.

‘Let the battle begin.’


	2. A Mini Boss Appears

Kenma stood there silently, bowing his head down and allowing his hair to trickle down his face, causing Kuroo to tilt his head curiously. 

“Hey Kenma, are you coming?” Kenma nodded, then stepped forward before once again stopping. He felt a sudden wave of anxiety overcome him as he nervously looked around and noticed students looking at him and whispering. His mind echoed with the sound of murmuring and laughing, reminding him of the gruelling year he had to endure. He covered his ears, wishing for it to stop – it was all in his head, but he couldn’t silence the voices, the intense feeling of being watched by a thousand pairs of eyes causing him to tremble.

Suddenly, Kenma felt a hand on his shoulder. Without him realising, Kuroo had positioned himself beside him, placing his arm around Kenma. He then gently moved him forward toward the school.

“Come on, let’s go.” Kuroo wasn’t really sure what was happening, but he could tell that Kenma felt anxious, so he wanted to remove him from the situation as quickly as he could. He walked his friend to class, guiding him the whole way so that Kenma could keep his head down. Once they arrived, Kuroo turned to Kenma, smiled and pointed to the corners of his mouth. 

“Lift your head high, Kenma! And don’t be afraid to smile!” In order to appease his friend, Kenma forced a smile. Kuroo patted his shoulder twice, then turned and walked away. After taking a deep breath in, he slid the door open, doing his best to keep his chin lifted enough. Even though it wasn’t Kuroo’s intention for saying those words, Kenma decided to heed his advice in hopes that he would could prevent the bullying from starting up again. 

Despite feeling uncomfortable, Kenma managed to get through the day without anyone troubling him. He had spent his lunchtime with Kuroo who took the time to give him a rundown of all of the volleyball team members, hoping that it would help Kenma to feel less nervous when he got to practice. He waited inside of the classroom, playing on his PSP in order to kill time. After a little while, Kuroo walked into the classroom and walked straight up to Kenma. Seeing an upperclassman walk up to the quietest boy in the class perplexed the other students, but Kuroo acted as though they weren’t there.

“Ready to meet the team?” Kuroo said beaming enthusiastically. Kenma nodded then turned his console off, placing it in his bag before putting it over it his shoulder and standing up from his desk. The two boys then walked through the hallways to the volleyball gymnasium. Kuroo looked over at Kenma who had stopped just outside of the door. “You okay?” he said sincerely. 

“Oh, yeah…I’m okay,” Kenma said softly with a slight tremor in his voice, but he smiled regardless, trying his best not to worry his friend. Not wishing to push him, Kuroo didn’t pressure Kenma to talk. He recognised that, like him, Kenma found being in new places to be overwhelming, so he chalked up the behaviour to nerves. The two of them entered the clubroom - there was only one other boy in there. He looked scornfully at Kuroo, then raised an eyebrow as he saw another boy with a bandage on his cheek peer from behind him. 

“Uhh Kuroo…who’s that behind you?” the boy said quizzically, unsure of what to make of this new character. Kuroo then glanced over his shoulder, then smiled and stepped to the side, revealing a hunched over Kenma.

“This is Kozume Kenma, my childhood friend,” Kuroo said with a tone of pride. Kenma lifted his head to make brief eye contact with the other boy, then looked away shyly. 

“…nice to meet you.” 

The other boy remained silent before letting out a little chuckle. In a jolly tone, he said, “so this is the Kenma I’ve heard so much about, huh?” He then walked a bit closer to Kuroo and Kenma, then pointed his thumb to his chest. “My name is Yaku Morisuke. I’m Kuroo’s classmate…unfortunately.” 

Kuroo then let out an angry “huh?” before towering himself over Yaku. Kenma instinctively backed away, causing Kuroo to look to him and, upon recognising that his friend was distressed, he repositioned himself and relaxed his face. Yaku once again raised his eyebrow, confused about the situation. Kuroo wrapped his arm around Kenma’s shoulder, then guided him further into the clubroom. As his friend collected himself, Kuroo began to change into his gym clothes, hoping that seeing him do so would encourage Kenma to do the same, though he seemed to just stand there staring at the ground instead. 

“So…how do you two know each other again?” Yaku asked, trying to ease the sudden tension in the room. Kuroo looked over at Yaku with a confused expression, knowing full well that he has mentioned his past to him, but then he realised he was just trying to give Kenma something to talk about to help him relax. Kenma remained silent for a while as Kuroo and Yaku looked at each other with a slight concern. The expectation for Kenma to talk grew, causing anxiety to well up in his chest. 

“He’s my neighbour,” Kenma said suddenly. Kuroo looked over to him and smiled, somewhat relieved that his friend had finally said something. Kenma then proceeded to take his shirt off, hoping that if he changed quickly, he could escape the situation. Kuroo looked over at Yaku and the other boy nodded understandingly. 

“Kuroo tells me that you two practiced a lot as a kid and that you played as a setter all through middle school. Is that right?” Kenma suddenly froze. He reflected on the past year, realising that he had been lying this whole time. He started to panic at the realisation that he would have to show his skills, or lack thereof, as a setter to the new team. 

His body tensed you, but he quietly nodded. Kuroo gave Kenma a concerned look. “Hey, are you okay? You don’t look to good…”

Kenma took in a deep breath, relaxing his body as best he could. “I’m fine, don’t worry. Just felt a cold draft I guess.” He took his sports shirt out of his bag, pulling it over his head. He then proceeded to quickly and quietly change, causing Yaku to cast confused glances at Kuroo. Feeling somewhat defeated, Yaku put his duffel bag away, then turned back to Kuroo. “Well, I’m going to head over to the gym and start warming up. I’ll see you guys in there!” He then exited the club room, leaving Kuroo alone with Kenma, who sat down to put his shoes on. 

Kuroo placed his duffel bag to the side, then took a seat next to Kenma. He looked over at him, but Kenma refused to return his gaze. Kuroo looked away, looking up trying to think of what to say. It was clear that Kenma wasn’t telling him something, but he knew prying may cause him to get annoyed and will make things harder for him when it got to practicing, so he decided to quietly wait for Kenma to finish changing. 

The two of them walked to the gymnasium is silence. Kenma anxiously watched his feet as he walked beside Kuroo, blaming himself for the awkward atmosphere he’d created. He really wanted to tell a Kuroo what was on his mind, but now wasn’t the time, so he decided to grit his teeth and bear it. They finally got to the gymnasium, but before Kenma got the chance to take a minute to compose, Kuroo stepped in ahead of him. Kenma reflexively reached his hand to try and grab onto Kuroo’s shirt, before recoiling and gripping his hand with the other. The two of them were no longer kids – acting like one would only cause him more suffering. He peered around the door then walked in a little, quickly getting spotted by Yaku, who started to jog over towards him. Kuroo seemed preoccupied talking to a group of what seemed like third years, so Kenma awkwardly stood there defenceless, realising he’d have to talk to Yaku on his own. 

“Hey, I just wanted to apologise for earlier,” Yaku said, placing one hand behind his neck. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” He then had a sudden look of realisation as though an idea popped into his head. “So I know Kuroo likes to call you by your first name, but what would be the most comfortable thing for me to call you?”

Kenma looked away from Yaku, furrowing his brow a little in discomfort. “Kenma is fine,” he said bluntly. He didn’t really care much for formalities anyway and since Kuroo didn’t seem to be concerned that Yaku was talking to him, he figured Yaku couldn’t be that bad of a person, despite his earlier quarrel with Kuroo. Despite this, he still couldn’t let his guard down, even though Yaku had been nothing but accommodating and kind. 

Yaku smiled warmly at Kenma. “Okay, I’ll call you Kenma then. As for me, call me whatever makes you comfortable.” 

Kenma paused, trying to think of how to respond. “Then, I guess I’ll refer to you as…”

“Yaku-paisen!” A third voice shouted, causing Yaku and Kenma to look at each other in surprise. Some of the third years laughed, and as Yaku turned around with a look of murderous intent on his face, Kuroo grinned cheekily in response, him being the source of the comment. Yaku turned his head round and smiled softly at Kenma, then walked calmly towards Kuroo before kicking him in the side. 

As Kenma watched this happen, he felt a hand suddenly on his shoulder, causing him to flinch. Standing beside him was a boy with a black fuzzy mohawk. Intimidated, Kenma hunched into a defensive position, worried that this boy was about to do something to him. The strange-looking boy smiled enthusiastically at Kenma.

“Hey, are you a first year as well?” Kenma stepped away from him, causing the boy’s hand to drop off of his shoulder. The boy looked up at Kenma with a bewildered expression, before smiling again. “My name is Yamamoto Taketora,” he said in a raised voice. Yamamoto expectantly waited for Kenma to introduce himself, but after a few moments of silence, he spoke up again, saying, “what’s your name?”

In stark contract to Yamamoto, Kenma spoke in a quiet, soft voice. “Kozume…Kenma.” 

The boy laughed heartily. “You sure about that?” he said sarcastically, then slapped Kenma playfully on the back, though the force of it caused Kenma to cough, which only caused Yamamoto to laugh more. The two of them turned their heads and jumped back as they noticed that a third person was standing there the whole time. “H-How long have you been standing there?” Yamamoto said in a high pitch.

The mystery boy responded by holding up seven fingers. Kenma and Yamamoto looked at each other, then back at the other boy. 

“Who the hell are you, anyway?” Yamamoto said, his tone shifting to a somewhat aggressive one. 

Before the boy could respond, one of the third years, presumably the captain, clapped his hands twice, asking everyone to gather round. “Okay, I’d like for new members to form a line in front of us so you can introduce yourselves to the team.”

Yamamoto stepped forward from the line first, boisterously introducing himself. Kenma did his best not to roll his eyes at his dramatics. The mystery boy was next. He took a step forward to introduce himself. 

“Fukunaga Shohei,” he said, then bowed and stood back in the line. The whole club stared quietly at him, slightly dumbfounded by the huge difference in introductions they just experienced. Kuroo covered his mouth trying to stop himself from bursting out in laughter, prompting Yaku to elbow him in the side. 

All eyes then turned to Kenma. 

Taking a shaky breath, Kenma stepped forward. “M-My name is Kozume Kenma. I play setter. I look forward to working with you.” He bowed, then stood back, giving Kuroo a quick worried glance, seeking approval. Kuroo quietly gave him the thumbs up, which prompted Kenma to relax his face a little. The captain stared at Kenma for a second, then let out a single chuckle. He then smiled and began to assign roles. 

“Yamamoto, help Kuroo set the net up. Fukunaga, you can help Yaku sweep the floor. Kai, could you please get the balls out for us?” The boy then looked at Kenma once everyone had dispersed. “And you,” he said in a menacing tone. “Go run ten laps around the gymnasium.”

Kenma was taken aback by the boy’s instructions. “T-Ten laps? Why?”

The boy’s face tensed. “Did I stutter?” Kenma gulped and interlocked his fingers anxiously. “Do it or you’re off the team. You wouldn’t want to disappoint your precious friend, Kuroo, would you?” Kenma lowered his head, then started to jog out of the gym. “Thank you, Kozume,” the boy shouted as he left, waving and smiling as he left, clearly as a front to the other members. 

Kenma jogged around the gym, and after his first lap, he looked into the gymnasium. The upperclassman stood there, then held nine fingers up. It was clear that he was paying careful attention to him, so despite wishing to slack off, today was not the day to do so. 

After finishing his laps, Kenma stopped outside of the gymnasium, bending his knees and placing his hands on them as he gasped for breath. The upperclassman walked to the door, a fake expression of concern on his face. “Kozume, are you okay?” He spoke in a raised voice in order to keep up his act, then scanned Kenma with his eyes. “Where are the bottles?”

Kenma looked up with a face of confusion. “W-What…bottles?” 

The boy looked into the gym, then back at Kenma, furrowing his brow. “You forgot to fill the water bottles up for us?” His tone was soft, but it had a hint of malice behind it. “I asked you to fill them up ready for when we started. Hurry up and get them filled or we’ll never be able to start.”

Although he wanted to snap at the boy, Kenma bit his tongue. He went inside to fetch the bottles despite almost being winded, putting some in a nearby bag, then jogged back of the gymnasium. When he returned, the team had already started practicing. Kenma gripped the bottles in his hands, trying not to squeeze the water out. Kuroo noticed him out of the corner of his eye. 

“Hey Kenma, come over here and set for us!” He spoke in a cheerful expression, his tone sounding somewhat boastful. Kenma set the bottles down to the side then lightly jogged over, but he suddenly tripped on his feet and fell to the floor. A few of the other students laughed, but Kuroo and Yaku rushed over to see if he was okay. 

“Kenma, are you alright? You feeling okay?” Kuroo said in a worried voice. Yaku’s face mirrored his concern.

“Oh my days, how pathetic!” Yamamoto cried between laughs. “Just how weak is this dude? Talk about having no willpower!” 

“Oi, cut it out! He could be seriously hurt!” Yaku yelled, causing the rest of the team to stop laughing. Despite being a second year, Yaku held a degree of power on the team, likely due to his surprisingly intimidating demeanour. He then turned to Kenma. “Kuroo, help me get him to a bench.”

The two of them positioned themselves under Kenma’s arms, supporting his body as they walked him to a bench and sat him down. Noticing how pale Kenma looked, Kuroo grabbed his water bottle and handed it to Kenma. “You look exhausted. Drink this.” As Kenma drank the water, he glanced over at the third year boy, who was staring at him with an angered expression. Kenma gently thrusted the water bottle into Kuroo’s chest, lowering his head. 

“Thanks Kuro. I’m fine now – I can practice.” Kuroo and Yaku looked at each other, clearly still perturbed. Kenma looked up at them, forcing a smile on his face. He then shakily stood up and walked over to the net, positioning himself to be ready to set for the team. As Yaku was not yet familiar enough with Kenma to discourage his behaviour, he reluctantly jogged back towards the court. Kuroo paused for a moment, then went and joined everyone else. Not wanting to cause any more alarm, Kenma decided to do his best to conserve his energy as he played.

To his surprise, the first and second years showered him with praise after practice, surprised at how well he set the ball for everyone despite having just met them. After some time and persuasion from the team, Kenma was made to be the team’s setter. Unfortunately, despite managing to impress most of the team, the third years continued to push Kenma more than any of the members. With their observations on Kuroo and Yaku’s protective attitude towards Kenma, they found cunning ways to put pressure on Kenma without their knowledge. Eventually, Kenma grew tired of it, asking Kuroo if he could quit, but he insisted he stayed on the team. Since he got along with the second years, and because he didn’t wish to disappoint Kuroo, Kenma stuck around. He was being pushed so hard, however, that he would often get fevers after practice, and despite his best efforts to hide it, Kuroo quickly found out and took care of Kenma during these times when he could. 

After having a quiet word with Yaku, the two of them decided to watch over Kenma, and whenever he would get given a difficult task to do, the two of them would drop what they were doing to help him, partially to send a passive aggressive statement to the third years. To their annoyance, the third years were powerless to stop them. Challenging Kuroo and Yaku would expose their tricks, but kicking them from the team would be detrimental, so after some time, the third years backed off and stopped picking on Kenma. 

Kenma soon warmed up to Yaku and Kai with assistance from Kuroo. On the other hand, he couldn’t quite seem to figure out Yamamoto or Fukunaga. The latter seemed to be silent for the most part, aside from the times he would randomly chuckle at himself. In contrast, Yamamoto frustrated Kenma. He constantly rattled on about willpower, a concept that, to Kenma, seemed vague and hollow. After an attempt to encourage Yamamoto ended up in an argument that was stopped by Fukunaga, the two of them decided to settle their differences, and Kenma began to refer to him as “Tora” as per his request. 

One day at the end of practice, however, an unexpected dilemma was brought up. Kenma glanced over his as the captain called everyone over for an unannounced meeting. 

“So as you know, the school festival is approaching,” the coach began. “I know that each class will be doing their own activities, but as a club, we also need to make sure to try and recruit some new members for next year.” The other team members looked over at one another. What the captain was saying was true – they did need more club members - but it seemed an odd time to suddenly try to recruit new members. 

“As this is our last year with you all, we wanted to make it special. So, after some discussion together, we have decided that we will set up a stall with some flyers.” Kuroo and Yaku exchanged confused looks, then spoke up. 

“Uhm, I don’t see how that is anything special,” Yaku said rather bluntly. 

“That’s true. The concept itself isn’t anything unique, so we figured we needed something that will really make us stand out.” The captain then looked at Kenma, smiling a little, then looked back at Yaku with a fake look of sincerity. Kenma tensed up a little, unsure of what the captain’s intentions were. He then beginning to talk again, clasping his hands together. 

“What better way for us to stand out that to dress up as a team?”


	3. Unexpected Allies

The team stood quietly for a second. Kuroo then placed a hand on his hip and slanted a little. 

“Dress up as what exactly?” he said with a slightly sharp tone. 

The captain smiled playfully. “I was hoping you guys could come up with some ideas. Since the event is open to the public, maybe we should do something thematic so we can draw in potential first years. I was thinking we could dress up…as cats maybe?”

Yamamoto stomped his foot in front of him. “No way! That’s way too embarrassing!”

Yaku raised an eyebrow at him. “Oh? So what’s your idea?”

Yamamoto his hands on his hips, puffing out his chest. “We should all dress up…as samurai!”

The whole team went silent. Fukunaga then chuckled to himself a little. Kenma looked at Yamamoto with disgust. 

“Samurai? Really?” Kenma said in a disappointed tone. 

“What? Don’t you think that would be cool?” Yamamoto said defensively. 

“Seems more fitting of the kendo club than the volleyball club,” Yaku said with his hand on his chin. 

The team fell silent again as everyone tried to come up with ideas. Suddenly, the captain perked up. “Maybe we are over complicating this. Perhaps we should just wear our volleyball jerseys?” He spoke as if he felt defeated, but he smiled as though he still had a plan.

Yaku tilted his head. “Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of making us stand out?” Kuroo and Kenma nodded in agreement. 

“How about one of us dressed up then…maybe one of the first years?” Kenma, Yamamoto and Fukunaga became more attentive. Yamamoto had a glimmer in his eyes. “No Yamamoto, you can’t dress up as a samurai.” Yamamoto slouched again. “Plus, you might scare off any newcomers. We need someone who has a strong presence, but who won’t intimidate people.” Everyone began trying to figure out what the captain meant, before all figuring it out one by one. Their heads turned to look at Kenma, who began to look very uncomfortable. 

“Hold on,” Kenma said anxiously. “Surely you don’t mean me…right?”

The third years smirked as the captain walked up to Kenma, placing his hand on his shoulder. “Who else could we mean? You’re clearly the perfect choice.”

Yaku stood forward in irritation. “Hey, wait a second. Why does it have to be Kenma? Can’t one of us do it instead?”

“Yaku, your short tempter might scare off the new members”, the captain spoke bluntly. “Kuroo and Yamamoto are also out because they look intimidating. Fukunaga and Kai don’t really have a presence, so people might not resonate with them. Us third years can’t do it because we will be gone next year, so it preferably needs to be someone who will still be on the team next year, right?”  
Unable to refute his words, Yaku clenched his fists. He and Kuroo weren’t completely sure what he was planning, but they read between the lines and figured that his intentions weren’t pure. Fukunaga seemed unfazed by the situation, whereas Yamamoto and Kai quietly listened to the third years. 

“Okay,” Kenma said quietly. “I’ll do it.” 

Yaku and Kuroo looked at him in shock. “H-Hey, are you sure about that?” Yaku said. “You don’t have to if you aren’t comfortable with it.”

“It’s only for a few hours, right? It shouldn’t be a huge problem. Besides, people will be focusing more on the fun stalls, right?”

Before Kuroo and Yaku could say anything, the third years quickly wrapped the meeting and left. The rest of the team quietly did the same, unsure of what to make of the situation. As Kuroo and Kenma sat on the train together, Kuroo finally spoke up. 

“Kenma, you know if this is too much, you don’t have to do this. No one will think any different of you.” Kenma tapped away at his game, pausing before making a reply. 

“It’s fine, don’t worry. It’s not like anyone will come to our stand anyway. I don’t mind wearing a dumb cat mascot outfit for a few hours.” Despite saying that, Kuroo could tell that his words didn’t match his feelings and that he was likely doing this out of a quiet resignation. Recognising that Kenma had seemingly accepted his fate on the matter and likely wouldn’t budge from his choice, Kuroo decided that the best he could do was quietly keep watch over Kenma. 

The next day, Kenma arrived at school with an uneasy feeling, though he wasn’t quite sure why. He sat down at his desk and quietly scrolled through his phone for a while before the teacher came in, holding a cardboard box in her hand as another student followed behind her with a similar looking box. They placed the boxes on the desk, then the student started pulling out textbooks from the box and handing them out to each desk. The teacher then spoke up. 

“Today, we will be doing a lesson on the historical importance of the samurai. Please turn to page 147 in the textbook as we will be using the material from the textbook for today’s lesson.”

Kenma’s face dropped, almost as though he could hear Yamamoto squealing in delight from another class. He flicked his book open to the chapter the teacher had mentioned, quickly scanning the pages. His gaze then fixed to a particular image on the page – a samurai sword. As he stared at the image, he felt his cheek begin to throb, his hands beginning to shake. The voices around him slowly got muffled and the room started to fade away. He slowly brought a shaky hand up to his cheek, gently touching the bandage as he began to feel a sharp pain. Despite his best efforts to hide what was happening, tears began to well up in his eyes, a constant stream running down his face as he started to hyperventilate. He quietly began to mumble to himself between breaths.

“Kuro…Kuro, help…me…”

Kenma closed his eyes, trying his best to dispel the overwhelmingly anxiety in his chest, the pain in his cheek. All of a sudden, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He suddenly opened, his eyes, looking to his side. 

“Kenma, are you okay?” As his eyes began to clear, he began to identify the figure next to him as Kuroo. 

“K-Kuro? What are you doing here?” Kenma said shakily. 

“The teacher said you asked for me.” Kuroo then stood up. “Come on, let’s go to the nurse’s office.” Kenma stood up without saying a word. He walked behind Kuroo, ducking his head and staring at the floor. He then bumped into the back of Kuroo as he stopped. Kuroo looked back at Kenma, then proceeded to open the door. The nurse greeted Kuroo, then peered behind him to see Kenma, who’s eyes had become red from crying. Without realising it, he had grabbed onto the back of Kuroo’s blazer, just like he used to as a child. 

The nurse smiled gently at Kenma. “What seems to be the problem?” 

“This is my friend, Kozume Kenma. Apparently, he started shaking really badly in class, so they pulled me out of class to escort him to you,” Kuroo said, answering on behalf of his friend. Kenma gripped a little harder on Kuroo’s blazer. 

“I see,” the nurse replied, then turned her attention to Kenma. “Come on in and take a seat.” She showed the two of them to a small bed. Kenma reluctantly let go of Kuroo and sat down, keeping himself upright. Kuroo stood beside Kenma as the nurse pulled up a seat. “Did you need your friend to stay with you for a minute?” 

Kenma thought about it for a second, then shook his head. “I’ll be okay,” he said half-heartedly. It wasn’t that he didn’t want Kuroo with him, but he’d rather not reveal the truth to him. He didn’t want to burden Kuroo with that knowledge. The nurse had an empathic look on her face, then assured Kuroo that he could return to class. After a final look of concern, he left the room, leaving Kenma and the nurse alone. 

“If you’re feeling a bit better, would you mind explaining exactly what happened?”

Not completely understanding what happened, Kenma tried to figured out how to answer her question. “I’m not exactly sure, but I couldn’t help looking at a picture in the textbook and then I began to feel really nervous.” Wanting to avoid eye contact, Kenma looked around the room for something he could look at instead. His eyes met with a pair of scissors, which caused Kenma to panicked and look in the opposite direction. 

The nurse looked over at the scissors, trying to piece together what happened. “What exactly was the picture in the textbook?”

“A s-sword”, Kenma stuttered. 

She then had a strong look of realisation. “Kozume-kun, have you ever heard of aichmophobia?”

Kenma looked up a little. “Aich…no, I haven’t. What is it?”

“It’s the phobia of sharp objects.” Kenma’s eyes widened a little, then he squinted uncomfortably. “I’m not a professional, but it sounded like you were having an anxiety attack because of the picture in the textbook, and you also seemed uncomfortable with the scissors over there.” She looked at Kenma with an understanding expression. “Is there anything – maybe an event in your life – that might explain you having this?”

Kenma anxiously played with his hands. “Nothing comes to mind,” he said, continuing to avoid looking into the nurse’s eyes. She paused for a moment, before smiling gently. 

“Do you have a stress toy?” Kenma looked up at her and tilted his head in confusion. She then pulled out a small toy from her pocket – a round, black stress toy with a cat’s face on it. “Something like this? They can be used to help relieve stress.”

Kenma shook his head. “I don’t have one.”

The nurse then gently took Kenma’s hand, placing the toy into his hand. “Take this one. If you ever feel overwhelmed, just squeeze it and it might help to take the edge off.” Kenma furrowed his brows in concern, then extended his hand out again. 

“I couldn’t take this,” he said anxiously. The nurse simply smiled, closing his hand on the stress toy with her hands. 

“Please, I want you to have it.” She then stood up, hiding the scissors in the drawer. “You don’t have to go to any more lessons this morning. Please just stay here and try tor relax.” She then exited the room.

Kenma looked somewhat agitated by her instructions. His hand instinctively gripped onto the toy, and when he noticed what he was doing, he took a closer look at the toy. He turned it in his hand, looking at the face printed on it. Somehow the toy reminded him of Kuroo. He started at it for a moment with gentle eyes, then continued to squeeze the toy. The nurse then returned with Kenma’s bag, placing it on the chair pulled out next to Kenma. He then decided to take the time to do some of his school work, not wishing to use his time unproductively. 

After the morning sessions had finished, Kenma quietly crept out of the room, making his way to the spot he and Kuroo usually met. Upon noticing him, Kuroo looked at Kenma with a surprised expression. 

“You’re still here?” Kenma simply nodded, taking a seat beside him and pulling out a bento box. Kuroo hesitated for a moment then began to speak. “Is it too rude for me to ask what happened earlier?” 

Kenma looked up at Kuroo, his mouth full of food. He then looked back at his bento box, quickly trying to finish the food in his mouth so he could speak. “It wasn’t anything serious. I just felt sick all of a sudden, but I’m okay now.” The two of them proceeded to eat quietly, though Kuroo couldn’t help but make sidewards glances at Kenma out of concern. Kuroo never brought up the incident again.

The weeks went by normally for a while, though any textbook given to Kenma had to have images of sharp objected covered by paper, which made him feel discouraged. Apart from that, everything seemed fine. But the day of the school festival drew near and no one seemed to know what the third years were planning for Kenma. As the day approached, everyone seemingly became restless, though no one ever spoke up about it. 

The day finally arrived. Kuroo decided to buy Kenma a drink from the vending machine before they went to meet up with the others. One final time, Kuroo reminded Kenma that he didn’t have to go through with the plan, but his words fell on deaf ears. 

They arrived at the clubroom where the team was gathered. The first and second years looked at Kenma worriedly, but were interrupted by the entrance of the third years. The captain had an extra bag with him, so he walked in and placed it down. He briefed the team on the plan, then turned his focus to Kenma, who had quietly zoned out the whole time. 

“Kozume, are you listening?” the captain asked sharply, snapping Kenma back into the room. He hesitantly nodded. “Good. Now, everyone leave the room so Kenma can get ready.” The rest of the team left the room, though not before looking at Kenma with pity, still unaware of what the third years had in store for him. The captain picked up the bag, then threw it to Kenma, who clumsily caught it. “I’ll be waiting outside. You have five minutes to get changed or else.” He then left the room, leaving Kenma alone. 

He opened the bag, immediately realising what it was. “You have to be kidding me…” Although he dreaded the idea of being seen in the outfit, he was used to the words ‘or else’ meaning he would be physically attacked, so Kenma defeatedly got changed into the outfit and stepped out of the clubroom where the captain was waiting. Once he saw Kenma, he smirked menacingly. 

Kenma walked behind the captain, lowering his head as he walked through the crowds. It was clear that the captain chose the busiest route. As they walked together, Kenma couldn’t help but notice that everyone was murmuring and giggling at him. He didn’t have his stress toy with him, so instead he grabbed his own hand, caressing it with his thumb in hopes to calm himself down. 

When they finally got to the stall, everyone looked at Kenma in disbelief. There, right in front of them, was Kenma dressed in a black maid dress, with knee high cat socks and a cat ear headband. He blushed furiously out of embarrassment, but he looked like he was on the verge of tears. The other third years snickered with glee. Kuroo had a deep look of concern on his face, but before he could ask if he was okay, Yaku snapped, grabbing the third hear by the collar. 

“What’s the big idea? You chose Kenma on purpose, didn’t you?” Yaku was about to strike the boy across the face, but Kenma grabbed Yaku by the wrist with both of his hands, stopping him. 

“Yaku please, it’s not a big deal,” Kenma said in an unconvincing voice. He then lowered he head, looking away from Yaku. “Besides, it’ll be over soon anyway.” Before he could react, he felt Kenma tighten his grip around his wrists, his hands trembling. Realising that retaliating would only make him more anxious, Yaku released the captain from his grip, lowering his raised arm and smiling at Kenma, though he had a pained look in his eyes. Kenma began to feel an overwhelming sense of anxiety. He felt like every pair of eyes was looking at him, mocking him and laughing at him. He kept hold of Yaku’s wrist, leaving the upperclassman feeling powerless to help. He wanted to lash out at the third years who were currently snickering at Kenma, but he couldn’t with Kenma watching and holding his arm. 

Just as he was about to break, Kenma felt Yaku’s arm jerk a little. “Who is that?” he said in bewilderment. Kenma slowly opened his eyes and let go of Yaku’s wrist, looking up and realising that everyone’s attention was now focused on someone walking towards them. As he opened his eyes more, he realised that there was someone walking towards them, who was also dressed up in a maid outfit and cat ears. The person drew closer and everyone looked in shock as they realised who it was. 

“Is that…Fukunaga?” Yamamoto asked, placing his hands above his eyes and squinting in disbelief. Fukunaga stood beside him, giving him a thumbs up while maintaining a blank expression. The team remained silent. He then reached into a shopping bag he was carrying and pulled out a set of cat ears and tail, offering it to Yamamoto. He took them despite being confused, and Fukunaga proceeded to hand out a set of cat ears and tail to Yaku, Kuroo and Kai. Everyone looked at these accessories, trying to figure out what the purpose of them was. Kuroo had a sudden look of realisation, catching on to what Fukunaga was doing. The outfit, the accessories – in his own way, he was doing his best to share the spotlight, making Kenma stand out less. A grin formed on his face as he put the headband and tail on. The rest of the team observed, with Yaku and Kai eventually catching on to the plan as well. Yamamoto had no clue what was happening, but he mirrored everyone else and put the accessories on. 

Fukunaga walked over to the third years, offering the accessories to them. Kuroo and Yaku smirked at the third years, feeling a strong sense of schadenfreude. Realising the cards had been stacked against them, the third years grew irritated. 

“You…don’t tell me you were the one lurking near the clubroom when we were discussing our plans? It has to be - there’s no way you could have prepared all of this otherwise!” Fukunaga stood there silently for a second, then stuck his tongue out a little and blepped at them. Growing frustrated, the third years threw the accessories on the floor, storming off. Fukunaga picked up the headbands and tails, placing them back in the bag. He then turned around, doing an ‘okay’ hand gesture. The whole team felt a sense of victory, like they’d just won a match. Yamamoto threw his arm around Kenma, ruffling his hair. 

Kuroo then walked up to Kenma, placing his hand on his shoulder. “They’re gone now, Kenma. Let’s go back to the clubroom and get you back into your uniform, hmm?” Kenma nodded, then Kuroo turned to Fukunaga. “You coming?” Fukunaga looked down at his outfit, then nodded and followed behind them as the rest of the team manned the stall. Kenma and Fukunaga got back into their uniforms, then Kuroo walked them back to the group. They came back with their headbands and tails still on and helped hand out flyers to people. Kenma turned to one of the visitors but flinched as he looked up at the boy, who towered him. The boy glared at Kenma, then smiled and took the flyer, leaving Kenma speechless. After the festival, the group spent some time together, laughing off the whole situation and poking fun at the third years’ reactions. 

For the rest of the year, the third years never attempted anything against Kenma. For the first time in the year, Kenma enjoyed a period of peace and security. His bond with the first and second years got stronger, and for the first time, Kenma found a group of peers he felt a degree of comfort being with. 

Things were beginning to look up, filling Kenma with a bit of confidence going into the new school year. Unlike the past two years, he didn’t feel completely overwhelmed on his first day. He was now a second year, and now the third years were people he knew he could count on not to cause him grief. 

The club gained four new members – Inuoka So, Shibayama Yuki, Teshiro Tamahiko and Haiba Lev – all of them being first years. Kenma immediately recognised Lev as being the boy he’d met at the festival, though it seemed that the recognition was one sided. 

Everything seemed normal until one morning. Yaku bumped into Kai on the way to practice, though he seemed reluctant to go near the clubroom. 

“Hey Kai, what’s up?” Yaku said in a chipper tone, giving Kai a playful punch in the arm. Kai looked at his friend with a somewhat disturbed expression. 

“Yaku, have you heard the rumours?” His voice sounded almost chilling, a departure from his normal collected self. 

“Rumours? What rumours?”

Kai looked around worriedly. “The ones about the clubroom? About…’her’ appearing in there?”

Yaku raised an eyebrow and placed his hands on his hips, clearly beginning to become impatient. “Stop beating around the bush, Kai. Who is this girl you’re so spooked about?” Kai looked down at Yaku, his face turning dark. 

“It’s Sadako.”


	4. Equipping New Armour

Yaku stood there silently, staring at Kai blankly. 

“Sadako?” Yaku said, tilting his head in confusion. 

Kai nodded in return. “Oota from the baseball club said he saw her yesterday on his way to practice.”

Yaku stood there, somewhat in amazement. He hadn’t seen Kai like this before. As they stood there quietly, Yamamoto walked up to them and gave a hearty “good morning” before stopping beside them. “Are you guys not going to the clubroom?” 

Kai turned, shaking his previous expression off of his face. “Oh, I need to do something with the class rep. Let Kuroo know I’ll be a bit late.”

“Oi Yamamoto, did you hear? Apparently Sadako has been showing up in the clubroom recently.”

“Sadako? As in Yamamura Sadako?” Yamamoto asked in a shocked tone. “The creepy girl that crawls out of the tv?”

“Well, I didn’t know that was her last name, but yeah. That Sadako has been spotted in our clubroom.” Yamamoto paused for a moment, looking at Kai then to Yaku. He then chuckled. “What’s so funny?” Yaku questioned. 

Before Yamamoto could explain himself, Kai started to speak in a sinister tone. “They say that she sits in the clubroom in the dark. You can hear the sound of video game music in the background. And then…the daydreaming girl appears before you, her hair covering her face.”

“Hey…if someone as gentle as Kai can say that, I can’t help but believe it…” 

Yamamoto sighed. “I wasn’t expecting my senpai to believe such a silly rumour!” Yamamoto exclaimed, his expression almost seeming mocking. “Well, you can stand here all day, but I’m going to go ahead to the clubroom.” Before Yaku and Kai could respond, Yamamoto had already started quickly pacing to the clubroom. 

He arrived promptly, opening the door that let out a tired creak. The room was pitch black and Yamamoto entered, trying to locate the light switch. He suddenly noticed that from the corner of the room, video game music was playing. “H-Hey, is someone there…?” He nervously looked around, trying to shake the irrational thoughts from his head. He traced his hand across the wall in search of the switch, but his eyes continued to scan the room. From the corner of the room, a shadowy figure stood up slowly, its face being dimly lit by a light underneath its face. Its head was bowed and it slowly approached Yamamoto, swaying a little. With each step, Yamamoto backed further and further away, eventually bumping into a wall and clinging to it desperately. He then let out a scream, causing the shadowy figure to flinch and back away, almost falling over in the process. Yamamoto desperately opened the curtains. He slowly opened his eyes to see what was in front of him. His face suddenly looked surprised, then shifted to annoyance. 

“Can you not scream so loud? You scared me half to death…” the figure said softly. 

Yamamoto clutched the shirt on his chest, trying to compose himself. “Kenma? It was you?” Stood in front of him was a startled looking Kenma. His hair had fallen down in front of his face as he looked up at Yamamoto. In his hand was a small console, quietly playing music and flickering gently. “What on earth were you doing playing games in the dark?”

Kenma averted his gaze, furrowing his brow a little. “Well, I’m trying to play Monster Hunter 4, but if I had the curtains open, the light would reflect on my screen and it would make it hard to see.”

Yamamoto let out an agitated sigh. “Can you at least lift your head a little? Your hair covers your face when you duck down and it’s a little scary looking.” Kenma stopped pressing buttons on his console for a second, lifted his head and thenlowered it to observe what Yamamoto meant. He then elevated his head again slightly, given Yamamoto a worried expression. 

“When I lower my head, I can still see what’s in front of me. Besides, I feel calmer with my hair being long like this.”

“Kenma, if you keep doing this, people will think you crawled out of your console screen!”

Kenma gave Yamamoto a somewhat disappointed look, then returned to playing his game. “That’s not possible. The screen in only three inches wide and…”

“That’s not the problem! If you keep walking around swaying like that, the rumours about Sadako being in the clubroom will keep spreading - you’ll stick out like a sore thumb!”

Kenma suddenly stopped tapping the buttons in his console, his movements coming to a halt. Yamamoto raised an eyebrow at him, confused as to his sudden change in demeanour. 

“D-Did you say…Sadako?” Kenma said, his voice trembling. Yamamoto looked down and noticed that Kenma’s hands were shaking rather aggressively. 

“Hey, are you okay? Don’t tell me you’re afraid of horror movies…” he said in a sincere voice, despite his poor choice of words. As he said this, Kenma’s breathing suddenly got very heavy. Yamamoto panicked a little, then gently directed Kenma down on a bench. “Kenma, what’s wrong?”

Yaku walked into the clubroom about to announce himself, until he noticed that Kenma had a look of terror on his face as Yamamoto stood by him with a look of desperation. His face quickly shifted to one of concern as he rushed over and knelt down beside Kenma. 

“It’s okay, just take deep breaths,” he said in a reassuring tone, placing his hand on Kenma’s back. He gave Yamamoto a side glance, as if to tell him to back away and let him handle things, figuring that Yamamoto’s temperament might make the situation worse. Eventually Kenma managed to compose himself. Yaku waited for a moment before speaking in a gentle voice. “Do you want to talk about what happened?” Kenma stared down at his console that he had somehow managed to keep hold of. 

“Is it true, Yaku? The rumours about me being Sadako I mean.” Yaku took a moment to think about Kenma’s words, figuring out how to respond. He realised that him being the center of the rumours made sense – his long hair, his tendency to bow his head, as well as him loving to play video games – but it also occurred to Yaku that he was hurt by these rumours. 

“Kenma, it’s just a silly little rumour,” Yaku began to say in a mild voice. “I’m sure that they’ll die down eventually.” Kenma’s face seemed to sink lower. For whatever reason, he seemed deeply distressed by these rumours. Suddenly, Yamamoto chimed in. 

“Say Kenma, if you’re so worried about your looks causing you to stand out, why don’t you change up your appearance a little bit?” Despite being annoyed that Yamamoto ignored his silent warning, Yaku couldn’t help but agree with his suggestion. “You don’t have to do anything major. Even just a small fashion change like a necklace could draw everyone’s attention away from your hair!”

“I hate to say it, but Yamamoto has a point,” he said in a somewhat disappointed tone. Yamamoto had a displeased look on his face, but bit his tongue because of the situation. Kenma quietly sat there, then his head jerked up as he hatched a plan in his mind. He jolted up and quickly put his gaming console away, startling Yaku a little bit. 

Kenma looked at Yamamoto and smiled softly. “Thank you, Tora.” Kenma then grabbed his bag and left the clubroom, leaving Yaku and Yamamoto speechless. On his way out of the clubroom, he bumped into Kuroo. “Oh hey Kuro, I’m really sorry but I’m going to skip out on practice today. I have something I need to do.” For some reason, Kenma sounded very enthusiastic, which Kuroo hadn’t seen in a while, so he wished him well and said he’d come by to visit later. 

Once Kenma arrived home, he closed his door behind him and pulled out a dvd case from next to his stereo. Opening it up, a small amount of money stashed inside fell out onto the floor. He picked up the yen from the floor and placed it into the pocket of his jacket. He then left the house again without his mother noticing and went to the local shop. Upon entering the store, Kenma started to take in his surroundings. He took note of everything – the old lady looking at the fruit and carefully assessing them, the mother looking at the medicine isle with a very stressed look as her child cried, the three school boys snickering down the snacks isle…

Wait. Something wasn’t right.

Kenma did a double take and looked back down the snack isle, only to realise he knew exactly who the school boys were. They were his bullies from middle school, the ones who tormented him day in and day out. Trying not to draw undue attention to himself, Kenma ducked down the furthest isle, pulled his hood up, then got in close to the shelf to try and hide himself as much as possible. He then attentively listened to the voices of the boys, trying to focus on them rather the sound of his accelerating heart beat. After what seemed like an eternity, the boys finally left, causing Kenma to sigh in relief. He then looked around and noticed that, by pure chance, he was down the isle he needed to be in. Kenma grabbed a box from the shelf, then took a moment to look at the selection of makeup, before turning and walking away. He then paid for the product he had in his hand, tucking it into his school bag before he hastily made his exit, trying to get home as quickly as he could. 

Upon getting back to his room, he dropped his bag on the floor and threw himself onto his bed, and yelled into his duvet for a moment. He then lifted his head as he heard a knock at his front door. He took a moment to collect himself, then rushed downstairs to open the door. 

“Hey Kenma!” Kuroo said beaming, raising one hand and holding a shopping bag in the other. Kenma stood to the side, opening the door up for Kuroo, who then took his shoes off and made his way upstairs to Kenma’s room, with Kenma following close behind him. Kuroo placed the shopping bag on the chair half tucked under Kenma’s desk, then sat himself down on Kenma’s bed. Kenma came in and moved his bag from the center of the floor off to the side, then sat down beside his friend. 

“So? What’s in the bag?” Kenma asked out of curiosity. Kuroo turned his head and smirked at Kenma. 

“Well, before I tell you that, why don’t you tell me what was so important that you had to skip practice? Did a new game come out or something?” Kuroo was used to seeing Kenma’s face light up when he bought a new game, and for the first time in a while, Kenma had that same look on his face. Unsure of how far Kuroo was likely to dig into the reasoning behind his purchase, he smiled playfully at Kuroo, extending his index finger vertically in front of his mouth. 

“Actually, it’s a surprise, so you’ll have to wait until tomorrow.” Kuroo raised an eyebrow at Kenma, then decided to play along. 

“Oh well, guess the stuff in my bag is a surprise, too.” Kenma looked up at Kuroo with a somewhat tensed face. The two of them stared at each other until they both bolted for the shopping bag at the same time. Kenma managed to smack his face into the chair as Kuroo whisked the bag up and held it up in the air. He then looked worriedly at Kenma, concerned that his friend was trembling and covering his face. “Hey, are you…” Kenma turned his head around slowly, his hand covering his nose as it bled, his eyes watering slightly. As Kuroo let his guard down, Kenma leaped up and snatched the bag from Kuroo, then ran to the corner, holding the bag close to him defensively. 

Kuroo then laughed. “Okay, you win. Open up the bag and see what’s inside.” Kenma paused for a moment, casting a look of judgement at Kuroo, before reaching his hand into the bag. The first thing he pulled out was a bar of chocolate. He looked up at Kuroo who seemed desperate for Kenma to reach in again. He placed the chocolate down beside him, reaching in again and pulling out a set of knee support pads. 

“These two things seem to be counter to one another,” Kenma said sarcastically. 

“Well, I noticed that your’s were a lot more worn from what I remember them being.” Little did Kuroo know that the wear and tear wasn’t a result of volleyball practice, but from all the times Kenma had fallen down or has his things stolen and destroyed. Not wishing to break the atmosphere, Kenma decided to reach in to grab the last thing in the bag. 

He grabbed it and immediately recognised the shape of the item. He pulled it out and observed it to be a game for the PSP. Kenma stared at it for a moment in disbelief – it was Monster Hunter 5, a game Kenma desperately wanted but couldn’t afford with the small amount he had. He then looked up at Kuroo, who smiled at him warmly. 

“For your perseverance in sticking to the club.” Kenma looked back down at it, feeling grateful yet guilty, knowing that he had been hiding things from Kuroo. “I know that I may have been a bit selfish when I asked you to stay in the club last year, but I’ve seen how much you’ve grown, how you’ve opened up to some of the other team members. I just wanted to thank you for that, and I figured this would suffice.” Kenma remained silent, causing Kuroo’s facial expression to shift to that of concern. “Do you not like it?” he said in a saddened tone. 

“No, I don’t like it,” Kenma said bluntly. He then looked up at Kuroo and smiled genuinely. “I love it. Thank you.” He then stood up and hugged Kuroo, the shock of which caused him to stand there motionless. After a few moments, Kenma pulled back and observed Kuroo’s dumbfounded expression. He let out laugh, then looked down at Kuroo’s shirt, only to notice that he’d bled all over it. Somehow the both of them had failed to realise that Kenma’s nose was still bleeding.

Kuroo looked down and chuckled. “Wait here, I’ll go fetch some tissue. Hold your nose until then to stop the bleeding, okay?” Kenma nodded, sitting down on his bed and pinching his nose. When Kuroo returned, he handed Kenma some tissue. Kenma continued to pinch his nose with the tissue and Kuroo sat beside him to make sure nothing else happened. 

After he had stopped bleeding, the two of them spent the rest of the afternoon playing games together and eating the chocolate Kuroo had bought. After some time, Kuroo had to leave and Kenma saw him out. He then turned and ran back upstairs, reaching into his bag and pulling out the box he had bought earlier. He went into the bathroom and got to work. 

The following day, Kenma had to walk to school alone as Kuroo woke up late and insisted he go without him. He also conveniently couldn’t walk Kenma to the club, so he went to the clubroom alone. Since he had arrived early, he decided to sit in the corner and play the game that Kuroo had bought for him. Yamamoto was the first to enter the clubroom. He once again cautiously entered the clubroom, but this time he found the light switch as Kenma stood up. As he looked at Kenma, his face went blank as he silently stared at him. 

“Kenma? Is that you?” He squinted his eyes as he said it, causing Kenma to scowl at Yamamoto. 

“Yes, it’s me,” Kenma replied disgruntled. As Yamamoto stared at Kenma in disbelief, Yaku, Kuroo and Kai entered the clubroom. Just as Kuroo was about to make a grand greeting, he looked over at Kenma and froze in position. 

“Kenma? What in the world happened to your hair?” he said, raising his voice a little in shock. 

“What’s the big deal? All I did was dye it blonde.” Kenma looked around at everyone’s astonished faces, making him feel self conscious. He pinched a section of it and rubbed the hair strands against each other nervously. “Is it that bad?”

Yaku then spoke up. “It’s not that it’s bad per se, it’s just…unexpected,” he said, doing his best to find the right words.

“You guys said I should change my look so that I didn’t stand out, right?” Kenma responded in a slightly irritated tone. Kuroo looked at Yaku for answers, causing Yaku to clear his throat nervously. 

“Was this the surprise you were hiding from me yesterday, Kenma?” Kuroo asked raising an eyebrow. Kenma nodded in response, though he started to feel anxious about his decision. Despite doing this out of a desire to not stand out, it seemed to have had the opposite effect, though at the very least, no one was referring to him as ‘Sadako’ anymore. In Kenma’s mind, it was a fair trade off. The third years continued to stare at Kenma with a blank expression, whereas Yamamoto, Inuoka and Shibayama looked at him in admiration of his new hairstyle.

After some slightly off-putting attempts from Kuroo to style Kenma’s hair, the team decided to put the matter to rest and move on, realising that the more they fussed over it, the more restless Kenma grew. Kuroo later commended him on his dyeing work, but when he brought up the matter of maintenance, Kenma said that he couldn’t be bothered to continually touch up his roots and that he would just let his hair grow out instead. Kuroo then had a devious look. 

“Then you’ll become a pudding head!” Yaku was about to rein Kuroo in, but to his surprise, Kenma chuckled a little, then looked up happily at Kuroo. 

“‘Pudding Head’, huh? It certainly has a better ring to it than ‘Sadako’ does.” Yaku and Kuroo exchanged surprised looks then smiled at Kenma. 

And with that, the name ‘Sadako’ became obsolete in Kenma’s life.


	5. Using New Items

Today was a day like every other. The team was practicing their spiking with Kenma acting as their setter. It was Lev’s turn to spike. Kenma set the back, feeling confident in his set. Lev made a running start, then leapt into the air and swung his arm at full force as the ball slowed in front of him. The whole team stared in amazement. The ball bounced off of his head and onto the floor – another failed spike. 

Kenma let out a sigh. He was used to Lev missing spikes by now, but he was amazed that he hadn’t hit a single one, so he couldn’t help but wonder if he was to blame. As the team took a break to get some water, Kuroo looked down at Kenma, who seemed to be drinking his water at a much faster pace that usual, his face tensed. 

“Is something bothering you?” Kuroo asked, though it seemed he already had a rough idea. Kenma stopped drinking and wiped his mouth with the towel wrapped around his neck. 

“It’s nothing really,” he said in an agitated tone. “I just don’t understand how Lev is missing every set. I know he’s new and all, but how can someone be this bad? Surely he should have hit one by dumb luck.” Kuroo looked upwards, taking a quick sip of water. 

“Well, this is his first time playing volleyball and we all progress differently, but the way I see it, he’s getting closer and closer. In time, I think he can be a valuable asset.” Kenma looked up at Kuroo with a look of disbelief, before looking away and sighing again. “In any case, Lev is lucky to have such a talented senpai setting for him,” Kuroo continued with a smirk on his face. 

Nekomata then gathered the team around, telling them that they were going to move onto practicing spiking with blockers. Kenma was asked to continue to act as the setter while everyone else rotated from being a spiker and a blocker. Yaku was positioned on the blockers side and Shibayama was positions on the side of the spikers where Kenma was, with their job being to pick up the ball after each spike. Kenma got into position, waiting for coach Naoi to send balls his way. 

Kenma set the balls almost robotically as his mind dwelt on Lev. He couldn’t figure out what to do with him. It wasn’t just his spiking that was bad, but his receiving was also lacking. Thanks to his height, his blocking wasn’t completely hopeless, but that would only get the team so far. He couldn’t see what Nekomata or Kuroo saw in Lev. His mind began to explore a variety of thoughts as he tried to find an answer. 

As his mind became hyper focused, he set the ball to Lev, who actually managed to make contact with the ball, though Kenma was still distracted. However, the ball was blocked, and before he could react, the ball went straight into Kenma’s face, knocking him onto his back. He covered his face in pain and the whole team stood still in a panic, with Lev looking as though he’d just angered a murderer. Shibayama ran over to Kenma, kneeling down and handing him a tissue to stop his nose from bleeding everywhere. 

“Kenma-san, are you okay?” Shibayama said shakily. Kenma quietly sat their, having finally been snapped out of his overthinking. 

“I’m fine…I think,” Kenma said half heartedly, still trying to figure out what happened while he was zoned out. Shibayama walked Kenma to a bench and the whole team stood around Kenma, which made him a little uncomfortable. Lev’s face had gone pale, causing Kenma to look up at him quizzically. 

“Kenma-san, I’m so sorry!” Lev yelled, bowing in front of Kenma, who blankly stared at him, unsure of how to react. 

“It’s fine. I shouldn’t have been zoning out,” Kenma said in a somewhat guilty tone. “Besides, you managed to hit the ball this time, right?”

Lev relaxed his posture, lifting his head then returning to an upright position. He placed his hand behind his neck and smiled awkwardly. “Uh yeah, I did.”

Kenma pulled the tissue away from his face to check if the bleeding had stopped, which it had. He then scrunched it in his hand then looked up at Lev with a somewhat irritated tone. “Just remember what you did and get better at spiking and I’ll forget this ever happened, okay?”

Lev flinched, not expecting to be so intimidated by Kenma. He nodded and Kenma stood up, walking back towards the net. After a moment of hesitation and exchanged looks of concern, the rest of the team got back into position to resume practice. Kenma was now a lot more focused on setting the ball, making the rest of practice go smoothly. 

After practice, the team headed to the changing rooms. Yaku kept looking over his shoulder at Kenma, seemingly as though he has something he wanted to say, but he kept quiet, choosing to just smile at the conversation already happening. Yamamoto then cut across the chatter. 

“So Kenma, why were you so distracted in practice?” he asked nonchalantly. Kenma, who was almost done buttoning up his shirt, flinched and slowly turned his head to face Yamamoto. He had a carefree smile on his face, but Kenma was surprised that he’d noticed. The clubroom fell silent. Yaku looked over at Kenma, his face shifting to one of intrigue. His fidgety temperament had shifted to one of relief. He tried to seem offended by Yamamoto’s straightforward question, but it seemed like he was glad someone addressed the question instead of him. 

Kenma anxiously stood there. He wasn’t sure whether it was best to discuss his problems with Lev or whether he should pretend nothing was wrong. Kuroo looked over, noticing the look of dilemma on Kenma’s face. He then grinned. 

“Maybe Kenma’s just mad that Lev has a terrible shot,” he said snarkily, causing Lev to become restless. He frantically waved his arms around and the team just laughed at the situation. Kuroo then smiled at Kenma, who had a look of gratitude on his face. The team then finished changing and headed out. Lev, in a plot of redemption, ran a little ahead of everyone, then pivoted on his foot to look at them. 

“Hey, why don’t we all go to the arcade? You know, as a team bonding exercise?” Yamamoto’s face lit up, along with the other other first years. Meanwhile, Kenma and Yaku’s shared a look of disgust. 

“Don’t wanna,” Kenma said bluntly, look down at his phone. Lev then ran up to Kenma, grasping his free hand. 

“Please, Kenma-san! It’ll be fun, I promise!” Kenma stood there awkwardly, before caving and letting out a sigh. 

“Fine, we can go.” He looked up angrily at Lev. “But you’re treating me to some food. Got it?” Lev frantically nodded, seemingly excited about being able to spend some time with the team. 

They all arrived at the arcade of Lev’s choosing. Everyone seemed interested in trying different things, and before they realised, they’d all split off into groups. Kuroo decided that he’d follow Kenma where he went – it seemed Lev had a similar plan. The two of them, along with Lev and Shibayama ended up in the claw machine section. Lev seemed somewhat agitated, but he quietly stood there tapping his foot against the floor. Shibayama looked longingly into one of the machines, staring at a large plush, which Kenma identified as being My Melody from the Sanrio series. Kenma walked up next to him. 

“Do you want me to try and get that for you?” Kenma asked. Shibayama looked up at him, causing him to nod his head while blushing out of embarrassment. He inserted a coin, then stepped to the side to let Kenma work the controls. The rest of the group watched Kenma as he calmly positioned the claw above the plush. The claw lowered, gripping the plush around its head, then carried it upwards. The team stared anxiously as the plush was moved through the air. The claw hovered, them released its grip of the plush, causing it to fall into to opening. Everyone around Kenma celebrated, praising him and asking him how he did it. Ignoring their praise, Kenma reached his hand into the chute, pulling out the plush before handing it to Shibayama with a soft smile on his face. 

“Here you go.” Shibayama held the plush in front of him, almost crying because of how happy he was. He then hugged the plush, grinning from ear to ear with glee. Kuroo looked over at Kenma with a look of pride on his face - he’d never really seen Kenma out himself out there for someone else, so it was a refreshing scene. 

“Hey, Kenma!” Lev shouted impatiently. “Let’s go play a game now!”

Kenma awkwardly took a step back, unsure of how to react. “Wait Lev, what about- “ Before he could finish, Lev grabbed him by the arm and started dragging him away, shocking Kuroo and Shibayama. After being taken a little bit away, the two of them looked at one another, then went to follow Lev and Kenma. 

“Lev, please stop, you’re hurting me…” Kenma said with an upset tone. Lev sat Kenma down in front of an arcade game, then went to the one opposite. 

“Okay, now we can do what I came here for!” Lev said impatiently. 

“I thought you took us here to make up for- “

“Hurry, choose a character so I can beat you!”

Kenma sat there, his body tensing up a little. It seemed like Lev wouldn’t take no for an answer, but he also didn’t have any change on him. Kuroo and Shibayama caught up with the two of them, and upon noticing Kenma’s look of discomfort, Kuroo placed a hand on his shoulder, then turned his attention to Lev. 

“Oi Lev, quit being selfish. If Kenma doesn’t want to play, you shouldn’t force him to.”

“Kenma is just scared he’ll lose,” Lev said flippantly. 

“I don’t mind playing, but I don’t have any money,” Kenma said in a slightly irritated tone.   
Lev chuckled a little. “What, did you spend it all on bandages for your face?” Although he only meant it as a joke, Kenma felt though he’d just been stabbed. He grasped the shirt on his chest, his breathing becoming laboured. Kuroo and Shibayama looked at Kenma worriedly – Lev simply looked confused, unsure why Kenma was reacting so negatively to his joke. “Hey Kenma…” 

Before Lev could finish, Kenma stood up abruptly, covering his mouth and running away. Kuroo chased him down. Yaku was in an area near the entrance with Kai and the rest of the first years, and upon seeing Kenma bolting out of the arcade, he went to go find the rest of the group. There he found Shibayama trying to calm an angered Lev. 

“What on earth happened over here?” Yaku said in an irritated tone. 

“It was Kenma! I brought him here to play games, but all he did was win a stupid toy and then run away when I asked him to play!” Yaku looked at Shibayama, who was clinging onto a plush and looking at the floor with a guilty expression. 

“Shibayama, what actually happened?”

Despite being put off by the offended look on Lev’s face, Shibayama spoke. “Lev said something about Kenma using all his money on bandages for his face, then Kenma freaked out and ran away.”

Yaku’s face darkened. He walked up to Lev and grabbed him by his collar, lifting him from his seat a little. “Do you always run your mouth without thinking, huh?” His voice became raised, prompting Shibayama to anxiously try to calm him down, taking notice of the other arcade goers watching the scene. Yaku reluctantly let go of Lev, pushing him back into his chair before angrily storming off with Shibayama following behind him. Kai decided to tag along, leaving just Lev. From across the arcade, Fukunaga and Yamamoto joined them. They decided that asking about what happened would only aggravate Lev, so they suggested they all call it a day and go home. 

Meanwhile, Kenma ran aimlessly through the streets before feeling someone grab his arm, causing Kenma to stop. He looked over and saw Kuroo with his knees bent, trying to catch his breath as he held onto Kenma’s arm. Kenma also panted as he drained his stamina without realising it. Kuroo managed to catch his breath a lot quicker then Kenma. 

“Kenma, are you okay?” Kenma turned his head away from Kuroo, not wishing to explain what happened. He pulled his arm away from Kuroo. 

“I’m fine, I just…wasn’t expecting him to get so mad at me I guess,” he replied between breaths. 

“Was it because Lev got really pushy with you?” Seeing his chance to evade the real reason, Kenma nodded. Kuroo placed his hands on his hips. “Well, I don’t agree with what he did. If he wanted to play games with you, he should have just said from the start instead of leaving it to the point of escalating to him forcing you to play. Either way, it’s over now. It’s just us. What do you want to do?”

Kenma paused, still looking a bit distressed. He looked up at Kuroo with puppy dog eyes. “Can…we get apple pie? I am hungry.” Kuroo remained silent before smiling playfully. The two of them then went to get apple pie, then started to head home. Kuroo sent Yaku a message to see what happened after they left, and Yaku explained the situation, assuring him that everyone was safe and Kuroo and Kenma were free to do what they wanted instead of having to come back. 

When they arrived home, Kuroo spent some time at Kenma’s house playing games as a way to help him relax, then went home at dinner time. Afterwards, Kenma went into his room, shutting his curtains and sitting on his bed. He laid down motionless for a while, listening as it began to rain outside. He then sat up, put headphones on and started listening to music, bringing his knees to his chest and hugging them. His mind began to flood with thoughts, replaying the day as well as events from the past. For whatever reason, Kenma found himself feeling completely emotionless, which frustrated him more than if he were to be upset. Just as the thoughts began to get more erratic, Kenma suddenly remembered when he was hit in the face earlier. He remembered that the pain he felt distracted him from his overthinking. 

Kenma took his headphones off, then picked up his phone, using the screen as a torch. He checked the hallway, making sure no one else was awake, then he crept downstairs. He went into the kitchen, opening the cutlery drawer. He scanned it, noticing the knives. In a blind fit of panic, he reached in and grabbed an implement at random, then closed the drawer. After calming himself down, he looked at the spoon he had acquired for a moment, looking somewhat disappointed at what he’d grabbed. He then placed his free hand on his bandage, staring blankly at his reflection before shaking his head to snap out of his daze. He placed the spoon in the microwave and set a 30 second timer. Before the timer finished, Kenma stopped it, trying to avoid the microwave beeping and waking his parents up. He grabbed an oven mitt and took the spoon to the front door. 

He opened the door, walking outside to the sheltered area out front. He stood there for a moment, listening the rain patter against the ground. He then got a tighter grip of the spoon, then brought it closer to his left arm before hesitating. Then, as his mind began to flood with thoughts again, he pressed the spoon against his skin in desperation, ignoring the searing pain he felt. His head began to clear up as he did it, causing Kenma to smile. The spoon began to feel less painful as his skin built tolerance to the pain, so he pressed it against different parts of his arm, repeating the process a few times. Afterwards, he felt a sudden rush of anxiety and regret, thinking that he was stupid for doing something so reckless. He extended his arm out from under the shelter, allowing the rain to fall on his skin and cool it down. 

Kenma snuck back into the house, placing the spoon in the sink and crept back upstairs to his room. He laid down on his bed and faced the wall, curling up on his side. His arm continued to sting, causing Kenma to cry until he finally fell asleep. 

The next morning, he woke up a lot earlier than usual. In a drowsy daze, he looked at his arm, remembering what he had done. He then sat up, rubbed his sleepy eyes, then walked into the bathroom. After having a shower, he searched the cupboard in the bathroom and found a roller bandage. He pulled it out, then wrapped it around his arm. He returned to his room, putting his uniform and making sure the bandage on his arm couldn’t be seen. He then got his stash of square bandages and replaced the bandage on his cheek, which had gotten wet in the shower. He sat on his bed, brainstorming excuses he could use to explain the sudden bandage on his arm for when it would be visible during practice. He then sat up, putting his bag on his shoulder and leaving the house. Kuroo was waiting for him as per usual. 

“Are you feeling better this morning?” Kuroo asked in a friendly tone. Kenma looked up at Kuroo and smiled. 

“Much better.”


	6. Hunt for Loot

Yaku felt a strange sense of agitation the whole day, continuing to linger as he made his way to the clubroom. Kai had something he needed to do first, but to his Yaku’s surprise, Kuroo offered to walk with him, though Yaku insisted he go to Kenma instead. Kuroo had a reluctant look on his face, but he then agreed to the advice and walked off. He entered the clubroom, expecting to be the only one there, but stood against the wall was Lev, who had somehow managed to change into his jersey already. 

“Lev? What are you doing here so early?” Yaku asked, though his tone seemed somewhat irritated. Lev looked up from his phone to look at Yaku, his expression seeming troubled. 

“I wanted to get here early so I could apologise to Kenma-san,” he said in a remorseful yet determined voice, which surprised Yaku a little. He was expecting Lev to pretend that nothing had happened yesterday, but he felt a small weight lift off of his shoulders when Lev spoke about his desire to atone. 

“I see. How did you plan on doing that?”

Lev tilted his head. “I was just going to apologise?” 

Yaku let out a sigh. “I feel like a simple ‘sorry’ won’t suffice. Besides, Kenma is the type to be more affected by actions rather than words.”

Lev pouted a little, staring back at his phone. “Well, what should I do then?” Yaku folded his arms, doing his best to come up with a solution. He suddenly perked up as an idea formed in his head. 

“Do your apology as planned,” he said somewhat demandingly. He then smirked as though he was plotting something. “I will have a chat with Kuroo – I have an idea.” As Lev stood there silently, Yaku walked further into the clubroom and began getting changed. Before Lev could question him, more club members began to arrive. Kuroo and Kenma arrived a lot later than usual, sneaking into the clubroom without saying much. Kenma took a moment to start to change, but when he did, the other members noticed the bandage wrapped around his arm. To their surprise, Kuroo also seemed to be shocked at the sight. Not wishing to step on a touchy subject, the team collectively turned a blind eye. Lev wished to say something to Kenma, but each time he went to speak, he paused and then turned away.

Everyone began setting up in the gymnasium. Kuroo seemed to be sticking close to Kenma, which made Lev hesitate to approach Kenma. He wasn’t entirely sure what he’d done wrong, but he got the impression from everyone’s reactions that he’d overstepped his bounds. Upon noticing his dilemma, Yaku jogged up to Lev. 

“Come with me,” he said, but before Lev could reply, Yaku was already dragging him by the wrist over to where Kenma and Kuroo were. As they spotted them, Kuroo turned to face them, positioning himself somewhat in front of Kenma, who was facing the opposite way with a nervous expression on his face. Yaku looked at Kuroo, giving him a look of reassurance to show that he wouldn’t let Lev do anything bad to Kenma. 

“Lev has something he wishes to say,” Yaku said bluntly, then stepped back to be beside Lev, who he then slapped somewhat forcefully on the back, jolting him forward. Lev awkwardly stood there for a moment, scratching the back of his head and staring at Kenma, causing Kuroo to raise an eyebrow suspiciously at him. Lev then suddenly bowed, forming a right angle with his body. 

“Kenma-san, I’m really sorry about what I said yesterday!” he yelled at the top of his lungs, causing Kenma to flinch and catching the attention of the rest of the team. Kenma then awkwardly held his injured arm, still refusing to turn around and say anything to Lev, who began to raise his head and reset his position. “Uhm, that bandage on your arm…did you hurt yourself after what happened yesterday?” The team stared at Lev in disbelief as they tried to figure out how to react. They’d all agreed with their silence not to mention it, but Lev had no problem getting straight to the point, though they recognised that he seemed to say it out of concern rather than malice. Kenma began to feel paranoid as though he’d been figured out. He looked up at a dumbfounded Kuroo through his hair, his mind beginning to fill with ideas on what to say. 

“Oh, this? It’s uhm…I fell out of bed yesterday and bruised it pretty badly, so I decided to put the bandage on because I knew we were practicing receives today.” Kenma didn’t speak with much confidence, but the team seemed to accept this reasoning. They figured he was lying, though they assumed that he had perhaps gotten hurt when he was rushing out of the arcade and felt too guilty to talk about it because he didn’t want to assign blame. The room fell silent as the team collectively tried to plan their next move, but coach Nekomata interrupted the silence and started the practice sessions, much to the relief of the team. Kenma struggled to receive the balls for the duration of practice as the force of them hitting his arms hurt him a lot more than usual, but the team seemed to understand this and didn’t bring it up. 

After practice was over, Kenma was asked to join Fukunaga and Shibayama in cleaning the floor, whereas Lev was with Yamamoto lowering the nets. While both Kenma and Lev were separated, Yaku hurried over to Kuroo, pulling him to one side of the court for a private chat along with Kai. Lev glanced over at them curiously, but was quickly scolded by Yamamoto, who was accusing the underclassman of slacking off. When everyone had entered the clubroom after finishing their chores, Kuroo spoke up. 

“Everyone, get into your uniforms quickly - there’s something we need to discuss!” Everyone looked quizzically at one another, unsure of what there was to talk about. Lev looked at Yaku, who smiled at him somewhat excitedly. The members got changed, then sat down in a circle on the clubroom floor. Kuroo looked around and found a baseball cap next to a pair of sunglasses, which had been left behind by one of third years from last year. He then found some paper and began writing names on it, then ripped the paper into pieces and folded each bit in half, placing it in the hat, then shuffling the paper around. The team silently watched as this happened, desperately waiting for an explanation. 

“It’s come to our attention that we haven’t done a serious team bonding exercise,” Kuroo said in a cheery tone. “So, as was suggested by Yakkun, we are going to do a surprise present swap!” The team once again looked around in confusion. “On these cards,” Kuroo continued, “I’ve written down the name of every member on this team. You’ll pull a name out, and then you’ll have to buy a present for that person. We will have a limit of, say, 2,000¥ and you’ll have a week to get the present ready for the swap, which we will do after practice.” Before everyone could react, Kuroo held the hat out in front of Lev. He looked in, then spotted a bit of paper with a lion draw on it. He looked at Yaku, who nodded at him. Lev took out the piece of paper, unfolded it and read the name. He then smiled put the paper in his pocket. Kuroo then held it in front of Yaku, who rummaged around and pulled out a name, though once he read who he got, he seemed to be trying to hide his disappointment. He then went around the other members, eventually holding it out to Kenma. He drew the name and unfolded it, revealing that he had drawn Kuroo’s name. He looked up at Kuroo with a disgruntled expression, though Kuroo looked back at him with confusion, unsure why he was looking at him with such a face. Kuroo picked out the last name, then the team was dismissed. 

Some of the members tried asking around, trying to figure out who had gotten them, though Kenma was usually quiet. Kuroo then turned to Kenma, smiling. 

“So? Want to go shopping for your person?” Kuroo said smugly, which annoyed Kenma. 

“Wouldn’t shopping with other people be a bad idea given that you may guess who they’re buying for?” Kenma asked, scrunching his face up and trying to figure out Kuroo’s intentions. 

“Yeah, but the chances that we got each other seem slim, don’t they?” Kuroo responded, his face relaxing. Kenma then realised that it seemed to be pure coincidence that he’d drawn Kuroo’s name, though he felt somewhat relieved that he would have to shop for him as it would give him a chance to repay Kuroo for the present he’d bought a little while ago. Yaku ran up to the two of them, then wrapped his arm around Kenma’s shoulder. 

“Sorry Kuroo, but I’m stealing Kenma today.” Kenma and Kuroo both looked at Yaku in shock, completely taken aback by his words. Kuroo then had a look of realisation, coming to the conclusion that Yaku had drawn his name and needed Kenma’s help choosing a present. It also seemed like it was an opportunity for the two of them to bond.

“Oh, I see how it is. You want Kenma to help you choose me a cool present, huh Yakkun? I was going to hang out with Kenma today, but I suppose I can give him to you,” he said dramatically, then walked off. 

Yaku smiled at Kenma. “Sorry for putting this on you suddenly,” he said somewhat apologetically. He pulled out his paper and showed Kenma, his face dropping. “I got Lev and I have no idea what to get him. I was wondering if you could help me?”

Kenma paused for a moment, then nodded reluctantly. “I need to get my money though,” he said nervously. 

“Hmm, well I haven’t been to your house before, but it shouldn’t be too much of a detour. Practice didn’t run that late today, so as long as I’m not interfering with any plans, we should be okay.” The two of them took the train to Kenma’s house. Yaku was asked to wait outside while Kenma went inside, pulling some money from his secret supply, which was draining very quickly. He placed it inside a small pouch he had, placing it in his bag then ran back outside to Yaku. 

The two of them arrived to a shopping district, looking around at all of the things they could buy. Kenma felt quite overwhelmed at all of the possibilities, which Yaku took notice of. 

“It seems kind of pointless to window shop, so maybe we should sit down somewhere to brain storm what to get our person. Are you hungry?” Kenma looked around anxiously. He wasn’t hungry, but he was beginning to feel anxious at the volume of people around him. 

“I could eat,” he said softly, so Yaku led them to a fast food restaurant. 

“What do you want?” Yaku said, smiling at Kenma. “Since I’m the one who dragged you out here, I’ll treat you!”

Kenma looked somewhat guilty, but he figured that Yaku wouldn’t take lightly to him refusing, so he asked for a small portion of fries. Yaku ordered fries as well and the two of them sat down on a table, eating the fries. 

“So who’d you get?” Yaku said before stuffing a fistful of fries into his mouth. Kenma quietly ate his fries one at a time as he figured out how to respond. 

“I got Kuro,” he responded sheepishly. 

“Wait, really?” Yaku said with a shocked faced, confirming to Kenma that it wasn’t a planned outcome. “Any ideas what you want to get him?” Kenma nervously spun a fry around with his fingers. 

“I want to get him something special I guess.”

“Oh? I suppose you’ve been friends for a while so you should know the sort of things he likes. Did you have anything in mind?” Yaku replied, to which Kenma shook his head in response. 

“He bought me a game I really wanted a little while ago and I’ve been trying to think of a way to repay him, but I can’t think of anything. Nothing I come up with seems to match what he bought me.”

Yaku went quiet for a moment, seemingly deep in thought. “Do you necessarily have to match what he bought you? I mean, for one thing, you have a budget for this team building exercise. Plus, I don’t think Kuroo wouldn’t really care about the price. Just receiving something from you that you out thought into would be enough, right? You don’t even have to buy him anything – you could make something instead if you really wanted to!”

Kenma nibbled on a single fry and he began brain storming. “What about you? Do you know what to get Lev?”

Yaku’s face dropped a little and he rested his head defeatedly on the table. “I literally have no idea what to get that idiot,” Yaku said, giving out a dramatic whimper. Kenma continued to stay silent, thinking away. 

“What about something to do with a cat? That guy literally shows up late to practice because he chases them, so clearly he likes them.” Yaku lifted his head, taking a liking to the idea. 

“Do you think he would like a sweater?” Yaku asked with a hint of enthusiasm in his voice. 

“I mean, he seems like he’d suit a sweater I guess?” As Kenma spoke, Yaku received a text. He quickly pulled his phone out to see a message from Lev with a photo attached. 

The message read “Do you think Kenma-san would like this?” The photo had Lev pointing enthusiastically at a figurine of a cat girl with revealing clothes. Yaku blushed a little and had a look of fury on his face, making Kenma suspicious. 

“Is something wrong?” Kenma asked. 

“Nope, nothing’s wrong,” Yaku said smiling, gripping his phone so hard it looked like he could break it. “Just give me a second.” He then tapped his screen aggressively before thrusting his phone into his pocket. 

The two of them finished up their food then headed into a shop. Yaku looked through the sweater section, before his face lit up and he pulled one out. It was a white knitted sweater with a ginger cat design in the middle. He searched for the correct size, then turned to show it to Kenma, but he realised he was no longer behind him. Draping the sweater over his arm, he searched the shop, trying to find Kenma. It didn’t take him long to find him because of his hair and bright red jacket. As Yaku went to stand with him, he realised that Kenma was staring longingly at a shelf full of cat plushies. He seemed to be particularly drawn to a black one and a calico patterned one. 

“What are you looking at?” Yaku asked, unsure of whether Kenma wanted to buy it for Kuroo or himself. 

“Oh, I just kind it thought the black one looked like Kuro is all.” Yaku leaned in to get a closer inspection of the plushies, then he pulled back and placed his free hand on his hip. 

“It kind of does, doesn’t it?” He then looked over at the calico cat. “And this one sort of looks like you!” Kenma looked over, his eyes becoming fixed on it. He pulled out his coin pouch, looking into it with a conflicted look on his face. Yaku caught on. “Is something wrong? It’s in budget, right?”

Kenma looked at his money for a bit longer, then closed it again, picking up the black plush. “Okay, I’m ready to go,” he said with a tone of sadness. Yaku grabbed Kenma by the back of his hood. 

“Hey, are you sure? Seems like you took a liking to the other one, too.” Kenma turned back to look at Yaku, then looked to the floor. 

“It’s no big deal. I came here for Kuro anyway, not me.” Yaku gave Kenma a stern look, then put the pieces together, realising that Kenma didn’t have enough with him to buy both plushies. 

“Very well then,” Yaku said with a smile. He then turned back, picked up the calico cat and walked back to Kenma. “I’m ready to go, too.”

Kenma look up quizzically at Yaku. “What are you doing?”

Yaku stuck his tongue out playfully at Kenma. “There wasn’t a rule against buying presents for people other that the name you drew, right?” He then walked passed Kenma before he could respond, making his way to the counter to pay. 

Kenma awkwardly stood behind him in the line, looking at the plush he was holding. “Yaku, you don’t think this present is stupid, do you?”

“What are you talking about? It’s perfect! It’s looks just like him.” He then quickly ruffled Kenma’s hair, then walked up to the counter to pay. Kenma did the same afterwards and the two of them walked out with bags in their hands. 

“I just realised, I didn’t really help you choose for Lev, did I?”

Yaku smiled. “Actually, you did. I had no idea what to get him, but I found something thanks to your suggestion.” The two of them walked to the train station together. Once they had sat down, Yaku pulled out the cat plush he had bought and placed it atop Kenma’s head, chuckling a little. “Yep, looks just like you!” Kenma then took it off of his head, looking at the plush smiling. He then turned to Yaku with a very gentle look on his face. 

“Thank you, Yaku.” Kenma smiled so genuinely as the sun lit up his delicate skin. Yaku stared at Kenma in disbelief, then softly smiled back. 

“No problem! I’m glad you like it.” Kenma then went silent and stared at the plush, but then had a nervous look on his face. It didn’t take Yaku very long to figure out his concern. “You don’t have to feel obliged to buy something in return, Kenma. Giving gifts isn’t a competition - it’s just an expression of gratitude. And well, I wanted to thank you, not just for coming out with me today, but for being an amazing teammate and friend.”

Kenma looked up at Yaku in surprise, blushing a little out of embarrassment. “You don’t have to be so sappy about it,” he said sulking a little, causing Yaku to laugh. 

“Fine fine, if you really want to pay me back, take a picture with me so we can show that rooster how much fun we are having!” Kenma had a conflicted look on his face, but then he looked up with determination at Yaku and nodded. 

Kuroo was sat on his bed, browsing a online shopping site on his phone. Upon receiving a message from Yaku, he opened it. It was a picture of Yaku smirking with a poker faced Kenma by his side, holding a small cat plush and holding up a peace sign. Kuroo smiled softly at his phone, then let out a sigh of relief and leaned back onto his bed.


	7. Trading Inventory

Today was the day of the exchange. The team had been buzzing about it the entire week: some bragging about the gifts they had bought, others being more reserved about it. Everyone gathered in the clubroom and sat down on the floor, placing wrapped presents of various shapes and sizes in front of themselves. Kuroo was the last to sit down. He placed his present in front of him, but for some reason he had a strong sense of excitement about him.

“Alright, lets start!” He adjusted his posture a little before speaking again. “I’m glad to see that everyone decided to participate.” He then paused, looking over at Yaku with a somewhat unsure expression. “Uhm, does anyone want to go first?” Yamamoto enthusiastically thrusted his arm into the air, causing the people sat either side of him, Shibayama and Fukunaga, to instinctively lean away from him. Kuroo granted him permission to go first, so he picked up his gift, then dramatically turned to Fukunaga. 

“Fukunaga, this is for you!” Yamamoto smiled at Fukunaga as he took the gift. Fukunaga turned it around in his hands to inspect it, then began to carefully unwrap it. Inside was a nicely folded shirt. He held it by the shoulders, then lifted it, revealing a shirt with a squid graphic on it. Fukunaga stared at it quietly for a moment, then spoke. “Ink-redible.” He then chuckled to himself as the team sat there and watched. Yamamoto grinned at Fukunaga, satisfied with his reaction 

“Yamamoto, choose someone to go next!” Kuroo said hoping to move things alone. Yamamoto scanned the room, trying to figure out who may have his gift. 

“I choose…Teshiro!” Yamamoto shouted, which caused Teshiro to flinch out of shock. He then quietly picked up his gift, then handed it to Kai politely. 

“Sorry if this isn’t what you wanted. I wasn’t really prepared to get a gift for you.” Kai smiled kindly, unwrapping the present. “Oh, be careful by the way,” Teshiro warned. Kai finished unwrapping to reveal a small cactus plant. 

“Ohh, I really like it! Thank you, Teshiro!” Kai said softly with a genuine tone of gratitude. Teshiro bowed a little in response. 

“Okay Teshiro, your turn to choose!” Teshiro scanned the room anxiously. 

“How about…Haiba?” Lev smiled cheerily, then picked up his present and enthusiastically handed it to Kenma, who paused a little in surprise at how forcefully the present was given to him. He unwrapped the present with precision, barely damaging the wrapping paper. He was taken aback by what he held in his hands. 

“I heard you really like the characters in these games, so I thought you might like this!” he said nervously. Kenma stared at the gift – a figurine of a dragon from a game series he really enjoyed. He then smiled warmly at Lev. 

“Thank you, Lev. I really like it.” The whole team fell silent in bewilderment. It was rare to see Kenma so tranquil and happy. Yaku smiled proudly. 

“Alright Kenma, you know the drill,” Kuroo said after composing himself. Kenma smiled cunningly.   
“Yaku, why not show what you got?” Kuroo perked up expectantly. 

“Sorry, senpai. This isn’t for you,” Yaku said to Kuroo teasingly, then handed the gift to Lev, who’s eyes lit up. He very hastily ripped the paper off, revealing a knitted sweater with a cat’s face on it. He lifted it up smiling, then smirked at Yaku. 

“Hey senpai, how did you know my size?” Yaku jabbed him in the side in response. 

“I helped Kuroo sort out the uniforms, idiot.” He sighed, then looked around the room. “Kai, I want you to go next.”

Kai handed Yamamoto a gift, which was revealed to be a biker jacket with a tiger sewn on the back. Yamamoto excitedly put it on, modelling it for the team and earning a few claps from the team. Kai chose Shibayama next, who nervously handed a gift to Yaku. He carefully unwrapped it and held up the gift, which was a black cat beanie. He then excitedly put it on his head. 

“Thank you, Shibayama! I love it!” Shibayama blushed a little, glad that Yaku received his gift well. Shibayama then chose Inuoka to go next, who gave his gift to Teshiro. He quietly opened it then stared at his gift, first with gratitude, then with confusion. 

“Uhm…what is this?” 

“It’s a hydro flask!” Inuoka said enthusiastically. Yamamoto suddenly began snickering to himself. 

“Why does it say ‘Save The Turtles’ on it?” Teshiro asked. 

“Yamamoto told me that his sister recommended this, so I thought it might be good for practice! It’s supposed to keep your water colder for longer and it’s better for the environment.” Yamamoto then broke into full out laughter. Inuoka had asked him for ideas, and after bringing the question to his sister, she had jokingly suggested a hydro flask. He had no idea that Inuoka would actually heed his advice, but the situation seemed hilarious to him. Fukunaga let out a quiet “sksksk”, which only Yamamoto and Kenma seemed to catch onto, causing Yamamoto to laugh a little harder and a Kenma to let out a single soft chuckle. 

“Uhm, thank you,” Teshiro said politely, awkwardly placing the bottle beside him. Inuoka smiled happily, oblivious to the reactions of those around him. He then chose Kuroo to go next, who handed a rather large present to Shibayama – he seemed taken aback by the gift. He unwrapped the paper gingerly, his eyes lighting up as he realised what it was. 

“A giant Cinnamoroll plush?” he said in surprise. He then hugged it. “Thank you, Kuroo-senpai!” Kuroo smiled, then looked at Kenma and discreetly gave him a thumbs up to thank him for the present idea. Fukunaga was chosen next, so he handed over his present to Inuoka. He hurriedly opened the gift and then smiled happily. It was a shirt with a cartoon iron, captioned ‘Iron Man’. Inuoka passionately thanked Fukunaga. 

“Well, I guess by process of elimination it’s Kenma’s turn,” Kuroo said smiling. And then looked around and had a look of realisation on his face. “Wait, you got me?” The team looked suspiciously at Kuroo. 

“I can promise you this wasn’t planned,” Yaku intervened. “I would have killed Kuroo if he tried to force himself to get Kenma.” Yaku’s expression was very serious and menacing as he stared at Kuroo. Kenma then nervously handed his gift to Kuroo. 

“Sorry if you don’t like it. I wasn’t really sure what to get you,” Kenma said somewhat shakily. Kuroo opened the present with great care, then paused when the face of a cat was visible. He then more speedily opened the gift, looking excitedly at the cat plush. 

“Kenma, this is amazing!” He then beamed joyfully. “Thank you! I love it!” Kenma blushed out of embarrassment, then looked away pouting. Yaku smiled warmly at Kenma, happy that his gift had received a positive response. 

Kuroo then clasped his hands together. “There’s just one more present to give!” Everyone, including Yaku, looked at Kuroo in confusion.

“There is?” Yaku asked quizzically. Kuroo stood up, pulling out a small plastic bag from his school bag. He then carefully emptied out the bag, revealing many similarly sized presents, each with the name of a team member attached to it. 

“Please take the present with your name, then once everyone has got theirs, we can open them together.” Everyone followed Kuroo’s instructions, looking at the present with great intrigue. Once they’d picked up their respective gifts, they open began to open them, though they did so at different speeds. They all looked in amazement at the gift. 

“I tried looking online for something we could all have in common and I came across these cat keychains. They had a wide variety, so I picked out the one that matched each member the best.” Kenma looked down at his keychain. It was a calico cat, similar to the plush Yaku had bought him last week. Kuroo then held his keys up, revealing that he also had one for himself. “I thought it would be a nice memento for us as a team.” Everyone smiled and thanked Kuroo for the gift. 

“Oh, one last announcement before I let you all go,” Kuroo said, interrupting the team’s chatter. “We have arranged a series of away games staring next week, which is Golden Week. More details on that tomorrow though. For now, let’s go home and get some well deserved rest!” The team then gathered their things and left the clubroom in smaller groups. 

Kuroo and Kenma walked out together, with Kenma preciously holding onto his figurine to prevent it from breaking. He had attached the cat keychain to his volleyball bag. 

“Mind if I come to your place today?” Kuroo asked. “My dad won’t be home until late and I am caught up on my homework, so I was hoping to chill with you.”

“Yeah sure,” Kenma said, clearly not paying full attention. He then suddenly stopped walking and has a look of shock on his face. “Wait, did you say we were playing practice games next week?” Kenma said with a concerned voice. 

“Uh yeah, I did. Why? Is something else happening?” Kuroo asked, to which Kenma got lost deep in thought. 

“Do you mind if I quickly swing into a shop on the way to my place?” He said, then frantically rummaged through his bag. “And I might need to borrow some money. I’ll pay you back when we get to my house.”

Kuroo looked at Kenma with confusion. “Yeah, that’s fine, but what is it you’re suddenly desperate to get?” Kenma had a panicked look on his face. 

“Oh it’s…nothing important. Just something I forgot to get.” Kuroo was about to say something, but Kenma interrupted him before he spoke. “Let’s go or we’ll miss the train.” It was clear that Kenma didn’t want to talk about what it was he wanted to buy, but he wrote it off as being something unimportant, so Kuroo didn’t push it. 

Kenma didn’t take very long inside the shop, but he had already hidden his purchase in his bag by the time he had come through the door. The two of them went to Kenma’s house, enjoying the rest of the afternoon by playing game. Placed neatly on his shelf was the gift Lev had bought for him. After Kuroo had gone home, Kenma went through his bag, pulling out what he had bought. He laid his things on his bed. 

“How on earth did my life get to the point that I am buying makeup?” Kenma asked himself with a tone of disappointed. He had done a bit of research online a while ago after seeing the makeup in the shop, but after finding out that the team would be doing practice matches with other schools, he figured that he needed to ditch the bandages. 

He unwrapped the bandages on his arm, looking at the burn marks. He then grabbed the makeup and began practicing applying it on his arm, trying to cover the marks as best he could. Once he was satisfied with the results, he left it on for the rest of the evening as a test to see if his parents would notice. They seemed glad that his wounds had ‘healed’ – his experiment was a success. Kenma washed the makeup off, then settled down for the night. 

The next day, he came to school with no bandages on, shocking his team who were not used to seeing Kenma without his bandages, but no one commented on it since, to them, whatever injuries he was hiding were now seemingly gone. Kuroo revealed more details about the practice matches, including that only the regulars would be attending. The whole team, even those who wouldn’t get to participate, seemed to be excited at the idea of playing practice matches during Golden Week, but Kuroo seemed particularly excited about one particular match they were scheduled to attend on Sunday 6th May – the practice match with Karasuno. 

Golden week arrived quickly and the team boarded the bullet train that was set to go to the Sendai station early on the Wednesday morning. Yamamoto lost his ticket on the train, but after asking for Kenma’s help, he spotted the ticket inside a magazine that was in the seat pocket’s net. The team left the train after riding it for about 2 hours, looking around the station and admiring it. Kuroo grew panicked when he lost sight of Kenma for a moment, but quickly turned to find him playing games, to which he reprimanded Kenma and told him to stay more alert. After failing to locate the bronze statue of Date Masamune and being shocked at Kenma’s knowledge of him (which he’d picked up from a game), they stepped out of the station. Inuoka and Yamamoto were excited to buy beef tongue, but were tragically dragged away from the store to the bus by an apologetic Shibayama.

On the second day in the early afternoon, Kenma somehow managed to get himself lost, so he decided to sit down and wait to be found. He was peacefully scrolling through his phone when an unfamiliar voice called out to him. 

“What are you doing?” He turned to see who it was and his eyes met with a boy who had bright ginger hair. Kenma then awkwardly looked away. 

“I’m lost,” he said softly. 

“You’re from out of town?” the boy asked energetically. He then recoiled and excitedly pointed at Kenma’s bag. “Are you a volleyball player? Those are volleyball shoes!” Kenma simply nodded at the boy. “I’m in a volleyball club too! I’m Hinata Shoyo!” The boy seemed to have an abundance of energy, which made Kenma feel slightly uncomfortable. 

“Kozume…” he responded, almost whispering. 

“Kozume? That’s your name?” Hinata replied, tilting his head. 

“Kozume…Kenma.” 

“So you’re Kenma. Are you in high school? What year? I’m a first year!” Hinata spoke casually to Kenma under the assumption that they were the same age. 

“Second year,” Kenma responded bluntly. 

The boy flinched. “You’re older than me! I’m sorry!” 

Kenma gripped his phone a little tighter. “Don’t worry. I don’t really like that kind of status stuff in athletics.” Kenma thought back to how he had been treated in the past. Third years were expected to be the ones you looked up to, but in his experience, they were the ones to abuse their status and cause him misery, all because he was a first year. In his mind, the idea of status seemed wrong. 

Hinata asked Kenma if he liked volleyball, to which he explained that he mostly played it for his friends and didn’t particularly like it himself. The boy then leaned against the railing, saying that Kenma might find it more fun if he learned to like it, to which Kenma explained he only intended to play during high school. Kenma’s eyes became fixed on Hinata who revealed what position he played with very expressive body language. The two of them then bonded over the fact that they played in positions that others would find bizarre. Hinata, who played middle blocker, was used to being judged because of his height. Kenma, who played setter, was used to being looked down on as setters are usually supposed to be the most skilled player, and yet he wasn’t particularly athletic. 

“Is your team good?” Hinata asked chirpily. 

“I heard we were good a long time ago, but we fell into a decline. Recently though…” Kenma looked back up at Hinata with a piercing look in his eyes. “I think we’re pretty good.” Hinata was surprised to see the shy boy looking at him that way. Something seemed to click inside of him. As Hinata was about to ask which school Kenma played for, a third voice interrupted him, calling out to Kenma. 

“Oh, Kuro.” Kenma suddenly shot up, picking up his bag and jogging towards Kuroo. He then turned to face Hinata again. “See you soon, Shoyo!” He then waved and turned back around, walking away with Kuroo. 

“Don’t go wondering off by yourself. We’re strangers in this place – you have to be careful.” Kuroo spoke in a stern voice.

“Sorry Kuro,” Kenma said, his tone of voice being somewhat dismissive. 

“You sound chipper. Did something happen between you and that other kid?”

“Hmm, I guess so. He is a middle blocker from Karasuno.” Kuroo looked surprised. 

“That little guy is a middle blocker at Karasuno?”

“Yeah. His name is Hinata Shoyo, a first year.” Kuroo seemed to grow in curiosity. 

“A first year? Do you know if he is a regular?”

“He didn’t say, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough.” 

Kuroo smiled, looking away from Kenma. “I wonder if we’ll be able to make The Battle of the Dumpster a reality again.”

“Kind of hard to say since we don’t know what we are up against I suppose.”

Kuroo laughed a little. “Astute as always! For now, let’s show these other schools how strong we are.”

After reuniting with the team, they headed to the Tsukinokizawa High School. The players there made comments about Kenma looking unsteady, to which Kuroo explained to them that Kenma is the backbone and brain of the team. They then proceeded to completely sweep them in the match. 

The night before the team was set to go up against Karasuno, Yamamoto, Inuoka and Shibayama had a discussion in the dorms on whether they thought Karasuno had any female managers. After yelling out the window and being scolded by Kuroo to quieten down, Yamamoto turned to Kenma. 

“What do you think, Kenma?” Yamamoto asked, Kenma quietly looked up at him from his phone, twitching his toes comfortably. 

“I don’t really care.” Yamamoto let out a dissatisfied grunt. “But,” Kenma continued, “I’m kind of looking forward to it. Our match against Karasuno.” The whole team gasped, staring at Kenma with disbelief. 

“Kenma, who has no will to play, is looking forward to a match?” Yamamoto said sarcastically. Kuroo then intervened, causing Yamamoto to pipe down. As everyone began settling down for the night, Kuroo looked over at Kenma with a spark of intrigue. Unsurprisingly, Kenma, who was laying next to him, was still wide awake and looking at his phone.

“So you’re looking forward to our match tomorrow, huh?” Kuroo said in a quiet voice. “Does it have something to do with that middle blocker kid?”

Kenma continued to scroll through his phone. “I don’t know. Didn’t you say Karasuno is a big rival of ours?”

“Well yeah, but I don’t think that’s why you are excited. If it were that easy to get you hyped up for a match, I’d go around calling everyone our rivals.” Kuroo had a smirk on his face, hoping his teasing would provoke Kenma. To his surprise, Kenma didn’t really react. 

“I don’t know why I feel excited. That kid…Shoyo, he had a sort of…presence about him. Plus, it’s the first time I’ve met someone who also plays a position that other people don’t seem to understand.” Kuroo looked at Kenma with a surprised expression. 

“That little guy really caught your attention, huh?” Kenma pouted, looking at Kuroo slightly embarrassed. His face was lit up by his phone, making him look a little spooky. “Anyway, enough chat.” He then playfully nudged Kenma’s arm. “We want to be well rested if we are gonna show those hungry crows who’s boss, right?” Kenma turned his phone screen off, placing it down next to him. He then stared at the ceiling and smiled. 

“Yeah, let’s do that.”


	8. Support Items

Kenma woke up early in the morning as he did every day for the duration of the Golden Week practice matches. He snuck into the bathroom, applying makeup to his scars, then returned back to the dorms, hiding the makeup quietly in his bag so as to not wake anyone. He got back into his bed, closing his eyes to pretend he was asleep. Soon after, Yaku’s alarm went off, waking half of the team up before he then hassled the remaining sleepers to get out of bed. 

Time seemed to fly as the team made their way to Karasuno High School, but for some reason, Kuroo noticed Kenma being more twitchy than usual. He seemed to be deeply engrossed in a game he was playing sat in the dorms as the team got ready, yet his leg bobbed up and down anxiously. When asked if he was okay, Kenma simply nodded. Once they arrived outside the Karasuno gymnasium, they lined up in front of the opposing team, bringing Kenma face to face with Hinata. He looked around nervously, avoiding eye contact with him. Hinata seemed greatly shocked that Kenma was a part of Nekoma, and after a fight between Yamamoto and Karasuno’s wing spiker was intercepted by Yaku and another member of Karasuno’s team, the teams made their way indoors. 

The two teams then started their first practice match, in which Kenma seemed particularly sharp and attentive. Ultimately, Nekoma won all six matches they played thanks to their strength as a team, though not without facing a few unexpected obstacles. Different team members interacted, forming bonds with their new rivals. After talking to Hinata about facing off again in an official match, Kenma was left a strange feeling in his chest. Kuroo looked over at him and was shocked to find a small smile on his face, his eyes keenly set on Hinata like a predator watching it’s prey. The teams left the school waving goodbye to their new rivals, then they started chatting amongst themselves - they all seemed hyper as they went back home. They were then told to go to the dorms to gather their things ready to go home. 

“I can see why you’ve taken an interest in that Chibi-chan,” Kuroo said, smiling at Kenma as the two of them collected their belongings. “He’s quite the unpredictable opponent.” Kenma quietly nodded in agreement as he threw his bag over his shoulder. 

“I wasn’t expecting that freak quick. Their team may have lost today, but if he continues to get better, I have a feeling that our next match will be very difficult.” Kenma said bluntly. Kuroo smirked, then threw his arm around Kenma’s shoulder. 

“Look at your getting all excited for a match,” he said, ruffling Kenma’s hair with his free hand. “I thought you said volleyball wasn’t fun?” Kenma wriggled his way out from Kuroo’s grasp, sarcastically dusting off his shoulder. 

“I wouldn’t say volleyball is fun, but if Shoyo lives up to his promises…” Kenma looked up at Kuroo with a sharp look in his eyes and a sinister smile on his face. “Who knows what might happen?” Kuroo stared at Kenma in disbelief, then chuckled a little. The two of them then said their farewells to the rest of the team before going home together. Since it was already quite late, the two of them didn’t have get time to hang out at either one’s house, so they went their separate ways. 

Kenma threw himself onto his bed, feeling exhausted from the long day of matches. He began thinking to himself, going over the matches in his head. He then looked at his arm. The sweat on his skin had begun to reveal the marks on his arm, causing Kenma to panic a little. Kuroo hadn’t seemed to notice this time, but he realised that he needed to find a new way to hide his marks. He started researching online and came across makeup that was more durable against sweat, but it was more expensive than the products he had been using. He nervously bit down on his nail, trying to form strategies in his head. He then recalled something Kuroo had said in passing during a conversation. 

“You know, with the amount of time you spend playing games, I’m surprised you’re not out there earning a bunch of money from playing in professional tournaments!”

Kenma had a sudden flash of inspiration. Though he likely couldn’t compete in gaming tournaments, he knew of another way for him to earn money from his games. He opened up a tab for YouTube and registered an account. He then binged a series of videos – some about how to start a channel to earn money, others were gaming videos that he used as a way to find the formula to producing such videos. He then researched different software for screen recording, finding one that had positive reviews and was free to download. On a whim, he opened up a game and started recording himself playing it. Eventually, hours had passed and he finally finished recording and editing his first few videos. He then began to upload the first one as his debut. The idea of being on the internet terrified him, but he was more concerned with people finding out about his scars. Leaning back in his chair Kenma exhaled deeply. His body felt heavy for some reason, so he got up slowly and made his way to his bed. Placing a hand on his forehead, he realised his temperature had gone up. He figured he was feverish due to overexertion, so he got into his pyjamas and promptly went to sleep. 

The next morning, Kenma was abruptly woken up by the noise of knocking on his door. He slowly sat up, rubbing the back of his head. As his arm went up, he noticed that he had forgotten to take his makeup off, which had now become smudged. Still feeling slightly foggy, he stood up and opened the door slightly, peering out from behind it to avoid showing his scars. Behind the door was Kuroo with a somewhat stern look on his face. 

“Kenma, you’re still in your pyjamas? Do you even know what time it is?” Kenma shook his head, causing Kuroo to sigh and show Kenma the time on his phone. Kenma panicked, then abruptly shut the door on Kuroo, quickly getting dressed into his uniform. He then wiped off the makeup and sweat from his arm and face, then reapplied a coat of fresh makeup. He hurriedly grabbed his things, then opened the door again. His uniform looked scruffy and his hair was a mess, but at least he was ready. As the two of them walked to school, Kenma adjusted his uniform and tried to fix his hair as best he could. With a look of concern, Kuroo finally spoke up. “Kenma, are you okay? It’s not like you to sleep in so late.”

“Sorry, I just felt a bit feverish after yesterday. I must have completely knocked out when my head hit the pillow.” He realised there was no point in lying since Kuroo knew that he frequently got fevers, plus it would benefit him to be honest should anything happen at practice later. Kenma then looked at his phone and was surprised to see he had a number of notifications. Kuroo glanced over his shoulder curiously. 

“Someone’s busy. Who’s texting you?” After properly inspecting the notifications, Kenma realised that they were from YouTube. He’d forgotten to change his settings, so he got notifications for every little bit of action on his channel. To his surprise, he had garnered a small following overnight. “Is that…YouTube?” Kuroo inquired. 

“Oh, yeah it is,” Kenma responded, still somewhat shocked at the response to his video. “I wanted to start earning a bit of money for myself and I remember you passively mentioning that my gaming could earn me money, so I figured making videos on YouTube would be a good way to test the waters.”

“Huh…that’s pretty smart. What’s your channel name?” Kenma looked up at Kuroo with a frown. “Don’t worry, I wasn’t planning on telling anyone! I just want to support you is all.” Kenma looked at him for a few more seconds, then sighed and relaxed his face, looking back at his phone. 

“Kodzuken,” he said in a slightly irritated voice. “My channel name is kodzuken.” 

Kuroo’s face lit up. “Smart name!” Kenma frowned, then sighed. He didn’t have the energy to get mad today. “Don’t you normally use ‘applepi’ for social media though?” Kuroo asked. 

“Yeah, but that’s for my private gaming. I wanted to choose something a bit more unique for this.” Kuroo smirked at him, causing Kenma to scrunch his face up in disgust. He adjusted the notification settings to avoid any of the other team members finding out about his channel the same way Kuroo did, then put his phone in his pocket after noticing the battery was lower than usual since he had fallen asleep before putting his phone on charge last night. 

Kenma did his best to play efficiently without exerting himself too much. Thankfully, the team didn’t pick up on this and so no one figured out he was playing with a mild fever. After practice, the team began getting back into their school uniform. As they were doing to, Yamamoto propped his arm on Kenma’s shoulder. Yamamoto became slightly confused at how warm Kenma was, though he didn’t question it. Kenma then looked up at Yamamoto disapprovingly, causing him to slowly put his arm back down by his side. 

“What do you want, Tora?” Kenma said in a frustrated tone of voice. 

“I was just going to ask if you were ready for tomorrow’s test,” Yamamoto said cautiously, unsure of why Kenma seemed so annoyed. 

“Test? What test?” Kenma said with a hint of concern in his voice. Kuroo suddenly became more attentive to the conversation. 

“You don’t remember? My teacher made a huge deal of it.” Fukunaga nodded in agreement. Kenma suddenly remembered when his teacher mentioned the test a little while ago, though he was only half paying attention to the announcement. He remained silent for a moment. 

“Kenma, did you need me to come over and tutor you?” Kuroo asked. Kenma avoided eye contact and remained motionless. He then nodded. The two of them finished getting dressed, then gathered their things and left together for Kenma’s house. 

Once they arrived, they got immediately stuck into studying. Kuroo was always very good at tutoring. He explained things very clearly, but he never made fun of Kenma if he made a mistake. Kenma seemed hyper focused on his studying, his face furrowed as he occasionally paused to think about a question. Kuroo rested his hand, quietly watching Kenma scribble down his answers. Suddenly, Kuroo broke the silence as his stomach growled, causing Kenma to break his concentration to look up at Kuroo, who was smilingly awkwardly and unconvincingly acting like nothing happened. 

“Wait here, I’ll go get some snacks for us,” Kenma said as he stood up and left the room. Kuroo sat motionless for a moment before an idea sprung into his head. He stood up and walked over to Kenma’s computer with a mischievous grin on his face. He switched the screen on and, unsurprisingly, his PC was on, opened on an internet tab of Kenma’s YouTube video. Kuroo checked the hallway and, seeing it was clear, he scrolled down and began to read some of the comments. Thankfully, they all seemed very supportive, which made Kuroo feel relieved. He then looked at the top of the screen and noticed Kenma had a second tab open. He quickly opened it, then raised an eyebrow in confusion as he scanned the page. He then heard footsteps, so he quickly switched back to the other tab, turned the screen off and sat down.

Kenma came back into the room with a variety of snacks in his arms. “My mother went a bit overboard when I asked for snacks, so choose whatever you want to eat.” Kenma sat back down, but before he got stuck into his work, he looked up at Kuroo, who seemed to be too preoccupied to open any of the snacks. “Is something wrong, Kuro?” Kenma said, feeling a little uneasy. 

“Oh no, it’s nothing!” Kuroo smiled, though Kenma could tell he was hiding something. Before Kenma could ask again, Kuroo opened a bag of chips and then teasingly told Kenma to get back to work, so he reluctantly complied and focused his attention back to his studying. As he did so, Kuroo began theorising on why Kenma was looking into makeup. He then had an epiphany. He found it odd that Kenma’s face scar and arm bruises had suddenly cleared up, especially because it all happened at the same time. He also thought back to Kenma suspiciously asking to go to the shop without explaining what he wanted and also how, when Kenma was getting dressed that morning, Kuroo heard what sounded like Kenma frantically going through his drawers. Kuroo wasn’t exactly sure what to think of this, but he wanted to believe that Kenma would explain in time, so he decided to keep quiet about it. 

After thanking Kuroo for his help, Kenma saw him out of the house, then went back upstairs and sat on his bed. He placed the back of his hand on his forehead, noticing that his fever had gone down a little. He would probably feel better once he slept, so he walked over to his computer and, after checking his new video comments, he turned the PC off, got into his pyjamas and went to sleep. 

The walk to school the next day was mostly quiet. Kenma was on his PSP most of the time, but he noticed that Kuroo seemed less talkative than usual. When he would bring it up, Kuroo would say he was fine and divert Kenma’s attention. It seemed odd, but Kenma didn’t wish to pry. Later that day, he did his test, focusing so much on the test that he didn’t have time to feel anxious about it. He then waited for Kuroo to enter the classroom and walk with him to practice, but Kuroo once again seemed to be distracted, which made Kenma feel nervous. Practice went by normally, but Yaku caught onto the fact that Kenma glanced over at Kuroo more than usual, and Kuroo himself also seemed to be on edge. Yaku and Kenma were tasked with lowering the volleyball net, then after they finished, Yaku approached Kenma. 

“Is there something happening between you and Kuroo? The two of you seem…off.” To Yaku’s surprise, Kenma seemed to have a look of concern on his face as well. Usually he was the one who was the subject of worry, but this time the focus was on Kuroo. 

“I’m not really sure to be honest,” Kenma said sincerely, his eyes locked on Kuroo. “He seemed on edge yesterday after I went to get snacks for us. He hasn’t really been talking that much, either.”

“Have you asked him why?”

Kenma shook his head. “I tried to, but he tried to play it off as if nothing was wrong, so I figured if he wanted to talk about it, he would. He usually tells me everything, even if not immediately, so I’m sure if I just give him space, he’ll open up.” Kenma then paused for a moment, recognising the hypocrisy of his words, which made him feel a bit guilty. 

Out of nowhere, an unfamiliar voice called out to the team from the gymnasium entrance. There were two girls – one dressed in a fashionable outfit, the other dressed in a different school’s uniform. The team quickly recognised the latter as Yamamoto’s sister, Akane, though they didn’t know who this other girl was. She had fair skin, long smooth hair and was also very tall and slender. Kenma looked over at Yaku to see if he knew who it was, only to notice that his face had gone bright red. 

“Uhm Yaku, are you okay?” Kenma asked, trying to hide his amusement, though Yaku was too mesmerised to respond. The girl scanned the room, then ran up to Lev and hugged him, causing the team to look around at one another in confusion. Lev then looked over at Yaku, calling him over. Yaku jogged over, then stood with Lev and the girl, his posture being very stiff. 

“This is my sister, Alisa!” Kenma overheard Lev say. The whole team collectively opened their mouths in shock, completely surprised at this revelation. Yaku shakily introduced himself to Alisa, who chuckled and shook his hand. Kenma looked to the side and noticed Akane was with her brother, but she then turned and took notice of Kenma, approaching him with a spring in her step. 

“Hey Kenma-san!” She then looked at him curiously. “Huh? What happened to the scar on your cheek?” Kenma nervously averted his eyes. Before he could speak, Akane perked up. “Wait, are you wearing makeup?” Kenma flinched. 

“W-What do you mean?” he asked shakily. 

“Wow, you’ve blended this really well! I wish I could put it on as well as you can. I wonder why Tora never told me about this – I would have loved to have known sooner so I could have asked you for tips!”

“Oh, the team doesn’t know...” 

Akane gasped. “They don’t? How could they not know?”

“Because I haven’t told them. And since they’re guys, of course they haven’t noticed.” Kenma tilted his head down, staring at the floor. “Besides, if I told them, they’d start making assumptions.”

Akane tilted her head in confusion, then had a look of realisation. “I think I get it.” She then smiled, placing her index finger over her mouth. “In that case, it’ll be our little secret.” Kenma looked up at her in shock, but before he could talk, Yamamoto came storming over, asking what the two of them were talking about. “We were talking about how dumb and goofy you are,” Akane said bluntly, sticking her tongue out at her brother. Yamamoto then began to chase her playfully. For a brief moment as she was running, Akane looked back at Kenma and smiled reassuringly. Kenma reciprocated, smiling softly as a way to show his gratitude for her promising to keep quiet on the matter. 

The team spent a bit more time talking to Akane and Alisa, before everyone split off and headed home. Kuroo and Kenma once again walked in silence, experienced the same uncomfortable atmosphere from this morning. They then split off when they got closer to home, the two of them feeling unsure of one another. The each spent the night thinking about the other, trying to figure out what the other was hiding, then went to sleep with troubled feelings.


	9. Old Enemies Return

After a poor night’s sleep, Kenma got up out of bed and followed his usual morning routine. Somehow he dreaded the idea of seeing Kuroo. He seemed to act weird yesterday, though Kenma has no idea why. After gathering his courage, Kenma went outside and waited for Kuroo, then began walking to school. Kuroo was his normal talkative self, but Kenma could tell he was hiding something still. Not wishing to bring back the silence, he decided to play along, acting as though nothing was wrong. An uneasy feeling followed him around for the duration of the school day. He began overanalysing his friend’s behaviour. 

‘Kuro was fine until after I came up after snacks,’ he began to think to himself. ‘So something must have happened while I was away. Did he receive a text? No, why would Kuro be concerned over a text? It’s me he seems to be weary of. Maybe…did he see something in my room? But what?’ 

At practice later that day, Fukunaga drew Yaku’s attention to Kenma, helping him to realise that Kenma seemed to be more quiet during practice. 

“Hey Kenma, is something up?” Yaku said after approaching Kenma after practice. “You seem lost in thought.”

“Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just trying to figure out something,” Kenma said calmly, avoiding eye contact with Yaku as he said it. He then looked up at Kuroo for a moment, who was talking to Lev and seemingly provoking him. Yaku looked over to Kuroo as well, then looked back at Kenma with confusion. 

“He seems fine to me,” Yaku said under the assumption that Kenma was worried about Kuroo. “Whatever it is that upset him seems to not be concerning him, so I’m sure it’s nothing.”

“You’re probably right I suppose,” Kenma said defeatedly, though he still couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d somehow done something to upset Kuroo. He kept it to himself though, concluding that bringing it up would only cause more problems. After practice had finished, Kuroo gathered the team together, announcing that the training camp would be starting up again with a new school invited. Kenma, who wasn’t really listening, perked up when he heard mention of Karasuno. The team talked amongst themselves, happy about the news. Yamamoto then suddenly got super excited. 

“Guys, we will be sleeping in the same room, right?” He waved his arms around as he spoke. Kuroo nodded. “Then this time, we should bring snacks and stuff!” The team looked at one another, then smiled in agreement. Having recently received his first payment from his videos, Kenma had calculated that, even after buying the makeup he needed, he would have a bit of money to spare. Not wishing to get asked to bring something he would find troublesome to buy, he spoke up. 

“I can get some snacks,” Kenma said, raising his hand. Yamamoto grinned like a small child, then threw his arm around Kenma and ruffled his hair before Kenma pushed him away. A few other team members agreed to buying food, drinks and games, then they all went their separate ways with a strong feeling of anticipation for the training camp. 

Kenma said he needed to head into town to get some cash to use at the store, and Kuroo accompanied him. They then promptly headed home, but after checking a message on his phone, Kuroo said he needed to head home to do some more preparation for the training camp and that he’d catch up with Kenma later. Entering the store alone, Kenma walked straight to the snacks isle. He looked at different options, trying to figure out which ones his team would like best. He decided to buy a few for variety, then paid, holding the snacks in his arms. As he left the shop, he looked up and immediately stopped because of what he saw. 

“Why if it isn’t Kozume!” The boy spoke in a menacing tone with a grin plastered on his face. Kenma quietly stared in fear as he was face-to-face with Shirai, the same boy who had cut his cheek, accompanied by two other students who were part of the same group. “I see you’ve bought us some snacks for our little reunion – how thoughtful! Why don’t we have a little catch up around the corner?” Before Kenma could speak, Shirai grabbed his arm, guiding him around the corner. With his back turned away from the bullies, Kenma was suddenly pushed over, causing him to drop his snacks on the floor. Using his arms to lift himself up, Kenma raised his head and watched as the boys picked up the snacks. Kenma then turned onto his back before Shirai knelt over him. He then gestured to the other boys to search his bag, to which they pulled out a small coin purse, chuckling a little. Slowly lifting his left hand, Shirai placed it on Kenma’s cheek tenderly. 

“Your scar seems to have healed, huh?” he asked in a soft voice. “That’s a shame. I guess I didn’t cut you deeply enough back then, but we can fix that next time we talk.” Smiling sweetly as he looked into Kenma’s glistening eyes, he pulled his hand away, then looked at it and observed it. “Huh, what is this?” He rubbed his index finger on his palm, the substance rubbing onto his finger. “Is this…makeup?” He then smirked while the other boys snickered. “I thought it was just the hair, but you really do act like a sissy, don’t you, Kozume?” Shirai stood up, then grabbed Kenma’s collar and pulled him in closer. “I see nothing has changed,” he said, his tone becoming condescending. He then pushed Kenma to the floor again. Standing over him, the boy looked down at Kenma with a sinister darkness about his face. 

“You’re so weak.” 

One of the boys handed Shirai the purse, which he threw up and down on his hand. The bullies then walked away, giggling as they left. Kenma remained on the floor, trying to calm himself down. After he had finished hyperventilating, he threw his bag over his shoulder, then stood up. He almost fell to the floor again as his right leg jolted in pain. With a mixture of frustration and sadness in his heart, Kenma limped home empty handed. 

Upon arriving home, he went upstairs into the bathroom, then cleaned his wound, flinching as he touched the cut on his knee. Realising he couldn’t apply makeup to his open wound, he applied a bandage to his knee, then opened the cupboards and took something from it. He then shuffled into his room, putting what he had taken from the cupboard in his school bag, then he sat on his bed. He extended his legs, gripping both his arms as he tried to ignore the pain in his leg and the rushing thoughts of what had happened earlier. When he went down for dinner, he did his best to hide his limp. His parents didn’t question the bandage on his leg, assuming it was a sports injury. He returned upstairs to his room promptly after he finished, then sat on his bed. He looked at his phone to check the time out of boredom – it was around 7pm. He noticed a few missed messages from Kuroo, asking when Kenma was free for him to come over. Kenma didn’t want Kuroo to see him in his current state, so he told him that he has to film a video and couldn’t hang out. He laid down on his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. He couldn’t be bothered to deal with his emotions, so he closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep. 

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a white empty space. He walked for a little bit before bumping into an invisible wall. He inspected his surroundings, coming to the conclusion that he was trapped in an invisible box. After looking around a little, he noticed a couch and TV had appeared to his side. He walked closer to it and noticed a gaming controller on the couch, so he sat down, folding his legs and picking up the controller. He played the game for a little bit before a familiar voice spoke to him. 

“Hey, mind if I join in?” the voice said. 

“Yeah sure,” Kenma responded without thinking, his eyes fixed on the TV screen. He then felt a cold chill in his spine, turning his head slowly to match the voice to a face. Standing by the couch with a knife in hand was Shirai, smirking gleefully. Kenma dropped the controller on the floor, shaking uncontrollably. His eyes began to well up with tears. He looked over Shirai’s shoulders, noticing a dark cloud with numerous glowing eyes filled the space outside of the box with muffled whispering and giggling. Shirai looked behind him, then back to Kenma. He turned around, took the knife in his hand and began using it to crack the invisible barrier. As it began to crack, the black cloud began to bleed through. Kenma trembled in fear, unable to form words to beg Shirai to stop. Eventually, the whole box shattered, the murmuring and laughter becoming significantly louder. The dark cloud began to close in on Kenma, causing him to curl up and cover his ears, his eyes closed. He began to scream in an attempt to counteract the noise around him, his chest in pain from his overwhelming anxiety. 

Kenma suddenly flinched, his eyes opening to find himself in his bedroom, which was now pitch black. His body shook a little, his body covered in sweat. He slowly sat up, clutching his chest has he tried to catch his breath. Once he’d collected himself a little, he checked his phone for the time. It was around 4am. He felt too anxious to go back to sleep, so he reached for his headphones, then watched videos on his phone while it was connected to a charging cable. 

Eventually, sunlight crept through his curtains. It was now about 7am. Kenma moved, his leg jolting in pain to remind him of his injury. He quietly crept downstairs, waiting for the mail to arrive. He then placed it on the table, but took a small parcel with him upstairs. He clawed at the sellotape with his blunt fingernails, eventually managing to peel it off. He then opened the box, tipping out the contexts onto his bed. His waterproof makeup had now arrived, ready for him to use. He approached his mirror, balancing his weight on his left leg. Taking a makeup wipe, he removed yesterday’s makeup. He carefully removed the packaging from his new makeup, then applied it. After he’d covered his scars, he gently caressed his cheek, then looked at his hand. None of it came off. Kenma gave himself an empty smile in the mirror, then hid his makeup away before getting dressed and heading out. 

Despite it being extremely uncomfortable for him to do so, Kenma did everything he could to hide his limp to avoid any unnecessary attention, though Kuroo seemed to give him suspicious glances every now and then. The two of them parted once they arrived at school, and once Kenma sat down at his desk in the classroom, he rubbed his leg a little to try and lessen the aching pain. After his final lesson had finished, he pulled out some painkillers that he had snuck into his bag the previous day after treating his wound, then took a couple hoping to ease the pain enough to hide his injury. Just as he hid the pills away, Kuroo entered the clubroom to walk Kenma to practice. The pills hadn’t started working yet, so Kenma put on a brave face as he tried to walk normally besides Kuroo. 

As they got changed, Kuroo glanced over at Kenma and noticed his leg had a bandage on it. He peered around the clubroom – everyone seemed engaged in their own conversations. Kuroo leaned over towards Kenma. 

“What happened to your leg?” he whispered, trying not to catch anyone’s attention. Kenma looked up at him, then at his knee. 

“Oh this?” Kenma said in a casual voice, trying to play it off. “Some jerk bumped into me and knocked me over. I’m okay though.” Kuroo raised an eyebrow, but Kenma seemed ready to head out, so he left the matter alone and walked out of the clubroom with the rest of the team. The team readied themselves for practice and Kenma noticed that the pain in his leg had seemed to subside, making him relax a little. The team got into practice with Kenma setting for the team to practice their spikes and receives. It was now Kuroo’s turn to spike. Kenma jumped up, setting the ball to him. Kuroo hit the ball at full strength, but Yaku received it perfectly. Kenma’s feet landed on the floor, but he felt a sharp pain go through his right leg, causing him to lose balance and fall to the floor. The team immediately reacted to the situation, with Kuroo rushing to Kenma’s side. 

“Woah, are you okay?” Kuroo said, extending his hand out to Kenma. Ignoring his friend, Kenma shakily stood back up. 

“I’m fine, I just slipped,” he said with a slight frustration in his voice. As he got back on his feet, he flinched and bent over, grasping at his leg. Kuroo got up under Kenma’s arm, then helped him over to a bench. Yaku jogged over from the other side of the net. 

“What happened to your leg?” Yaku said, deeply concerned about Kenma. 

“I hurt it after someone bumped into me and made me fall over. I must have just landed on it funny after that set.” Kenma spoke with a sharpness to his voice due to the pain he was in. 

“You should sit out for this session, Kenma,” Nekomata said, giving him a reassuring smile. But to Kenma, it just seemed like defeat. 

“I’m fine to keep playing,” he responded with a desperation in his voice. Nekomata shook his head, insisting Kenma stay seated. 

“Playing with an injured leg will only make it worse. Taking a break isn’t a sign of weakness – admitting you need time to heal is a sign of strength.” Kenma looked at the floor compliantly, deciding there was no point in continuing to insist. He watched from the bench as the rest of the team practiced. Since Kenma was usually available to play setter, they had Teshiro fill in for him.

After practice, Kuroo helped Kenma up to his feet after helping clear things away. His leg had recovered a little, though he still felt a great deal of pain when putting any weight on it. He figured there was no point in pretending to be okay, plus he was no longer in a position to simply put up with the pain, so Kuroo and Kai helped him limp back to the clubroom. He then got changed sitting down, even though it was a bit difficult to do so. Kuroo supported Kenma as they walked out of the school, but then Kenma wriggled away and walked the rest of the way by himself, limping more obviously. Kuroo looked at him worriedly, but he didn’t think forcing his help onto Kenma was ideal, especially since Kenma continually insisted he didn’t need it. 

Kuroo went with Kenma to his house, helping him up the stairs. Kenma sat on his bed, once again stretching his legs out and rolling up his trouser leg. He told Kuroo that his parents weren’t aware of his injury and that he didn’t want to concern them, so Kuroo quietly got an ice pack for Kenma and brought it up to him, placing it on his leg. Kenma felt an immediate sense of relief, causing him to lay back into his pillow and close his eyes, exhausted from having to hobble his way home. Kuroo asked to play a game on Kenma’s console, to which he was granted permission to do so. He offered Kenma a controller, but he refused, deciding to just lay down and watch his friend play instead. The two of them stayed quiet for a most part, and as Kenma closed his eyes out of tiredness, he accidentally fell asleep. 

Kenma slowly opened his eyes again as he felt his body swaying a little. He looked over to see Kuroo leaned over him, his hand placed on Kenma’s shoulder – he had been trying to shake Kenma to wake him up. Kenma then sat up, rubbing the sleepiness from his eyes, then stretched his arms out. 

“You must have been really tired,” Kuroo said chuckling a little. Kenma looked at him with a furrowed brow. 

“Really? How so?”

“Ah well, you fell asleep pretty quickly and you were out cold for the whole time, even when I tried saying your name.” Kenma looked at his phone. Somehow he’d managed to be asleep for two hours undisturbed. “Did you not sleep well last night?” Kuroo said, noticing that his friend was still half asleep. Kenma thought back to his dream last night, then looked up at Kuroo with a nervous look on his face. He then looked at his hands, twirling his thumbs around one another. 

“I had a bad dream, but it’s no big deal,” Kenma said softly. Before Kuroo has the chance to question further, Kenma turned around in his bed, dangling his legs off of the side. “I smell food. Let’s go enjoy some dinner.” He slowly stood up and shuffled to the door. He stopped, then turned around to see his friend standing there with a conflicted expression on his face. “You coming, Kuro?” Kuroo turned his head to look at Kenma, then smiled and nodded. 

The uneasy feeling the two boys had continued to grow.


	10. Low on Stamina

Kenma woke up late, sending him into a panic as he packed his bags. He made sure he had remembered his new makeup, his sports gear and other essentials for sleeping over. He had the feeling he was forgetting something, but after looking at the time on his phone, he anxiously made his way outside where a slightly agitate Kuroo was waiting for him. 

“You overslept again? This is the third day in a row!” Kuroo said, half snapping at Kenma. 

“I’m sorry, Kuro,” Kenma said, awkwardly staring at his own feet as he walked beside his friend. Kuroo then let out a defeated sigh. 

“It’s alright, I’m just worried about you is all,” he replied, his voice sounding a lot more compassionate. “In all honesty, I didn’t sleep well last night either. I couldn’t help thinking about today.” Kenma then looked up at Kuroo, then looked in front of him. 

“I thought I was the only person who would be worried about the training camp. Don’t we know most of the schools attending?” Kenma said, trying to ease Kuroo’s nerves. 

“True, but each team will likely have new members, plus Karasuno will be there as well.”

“You’re nervous about Karasuno being there?” Kenma raised an eyebrow at Kuroo. 

“It’s not that, it’s just…” Kuroo went quiet, trying to search for the right words to describe what he was feeling. 

“A nervousness you can’t explain?” Kuroo looked over at Kenma, making eye contact with him, before smiling and turning his head away. 

“Yeah, that.” The two of them went quiet, so Kenma pulled out his PSP and booted up a game. Kuroo glanced over at him for a second, then looked away to yawn. He began to get lost in his own thoughts, trying to figure out what was causing Kenma to have trouble sleeping the past few days. He was getting concerned that Kenma refused to bring it up. Kuroo began to worry that there was more Kenma was hiding than he thought. They soon arrived at the school where the rest of the team had already gathered. 

“You slowpokes, we’ve been waiting almost half an hour!” Yaku snapped, raising his voice. “Where have you been?” Kenma hid himself behind Kuroo, hoping he’d make excuses for the two of them. Kuroo looked back at Kenma, then sighed.

“Sorry, Yaku-paisen, we overslept,” Kuroo said, scratching the back of his neck and smiling teasingly. 

“Overslept? Both of you?” Yaku responded, clearly frustrated. Kuroo raised an eyebrow, then looked at the rest of the team, who were looking away nervously. Yamamoto looked like he was desperate to speak up, but he avoided eye contact with Kuroo. Kai then stood forward, placing his hand on Yaku’s shoulder. 

“Now now, Yaku. Just because you got here ridiculously early because you couldn’t sleep doesn’t mean you should take it out on those who could sleep.” Everyone stared at Kai in a stunned silence, taken aback by his bravery. Yaku looked back at Kai with anger written all over his face, but upon seeing Kai’s relaxed expression, Yaku eased up. 

“Whatever, the other teams will be here shortly. Just come and line up with us so we can greet them properly.” Kenma peered from behind Kuroo, looking up at him. They made eye contact, then Kuroo moved forward to join the rest of the group without saying a word. Kenma awkwardly trailed behind him, then walked between Yaku and Kuroo, though he seemed uncomfortable getting close to either of them. Yaku looked suspiciously at him, but when he noticed how exhausted Kenma looked, he looked away from him to make him feel less pressured. “Sorry if I scared you, Kenma,” he said under his breath so that only Kenma would hear. He looked at Yaku, then looked away again, acknowledging his apology. 

Soon enough, the other teams arrived at the school. When Karasuno arrived, Kenma was disappointed to find Hinata wasn’t among them, but he quickly forgot about it as the matches started. It took him a little while to get into rhythm as he was not used to having so many people in the same place, but once he realised everyone was focusing on their own matches, he got his head in the game. Hinata and Kageyama arrived towards the end of the day, only managing to play one match before the teams stopped for the day. 

Kenma went to the classroom where they’d be sleeping, pulling out his PSP. Inuoka and Hinata were with him and the three of them talked about Lev. Yaku was proud to see Kenma talking so openly, but he also noticed that the mysterious gloom surrounding Kenma that morning had seemed to die down. He still wasn’t completely sure what caused it, but he somehow felt as though Kuroo was involved. Since it was just a gut instinct, he didn’t pursue it, not wishing to make Kenma or Kuroo uncomfortable. 

As he did during Golden Week, Kenma got up before the team, rushed to the bathroom to apply his makeup, then returned and pretended to be asleep, but in reality he didn’t sleep at all. He couldn’t sleep. Eventually everyone got up and started getting ready, which is when Kenma suddenly realised he hadn’t packed any socks, so he had to reuse the ones he wore the day before. He felt more exhausted, but he continued to push through, knowing that the first half of the training camp would be over soon and he could go home. 

When the teams started their matches, he noticed Hinata watching Lev. Although he and Lev got on a lot better than before, Kenma found Lev’s constant politeness to be slightly unnerving – formalities wasn’t something he understood – and Lev was often a difficult person to read. Kenma did his best to stay focused during the matches, but every now and then, he’d catch himself staring off into space, though he managed to hide this from everyone else somehow. As he was getting carried away in thought again during their lunch break, Yamamoto threw his arm around Kenma’s shoulder, catching him off guard. 

“You ready for some games?” he said smirking. Kenma moved his arm off of him, then looked at him with a disgusted face, as if he was calling Yamamoto an idiot. 

“Of course I’m ready,” Kenma replied bluntly. “That’s the whole reason we are here after all.” 

Yamamoto raised an eyebrow in confusion. “Really? You wanted to play that badly?” 

Kenma returned a look of confusion at Yamamoto. “Well, not exactly,” he said looking away awkwardly. “But going up against other teams is good for practice.” 

Yamamoto remained silent, causing Kenma to get anxious. “We aren’t playing with them, are we?”

Kenma gave Yamamoto a dumbfounded look. “Wait, you’re not talking about volleyball, are you?” Yamamoto shook his head. “What are we even talking about then?”

“You don’t remember?” He sounded slightly offended, causing Kenma to recoil a little. “We were gonna play games and eat snacks together as a team! You even got the snacks, didn’t you?” 

Kenma became fidgety. “Uhm, actually…”

Yamamoto sighed, giving Kenma a disappointed look. “You forgot, didn’t you?” Not wishing to reveal the truth, Kenma nodded his head. Yaku caught the two of them out of the corner of his eye, then approached them. 

“Is everything okay?” he asked with concern. 

“Kenma forgot the snacks!” Yamamoto responded, raising his voice and pointing at Kenma who began to hunch over a little. Yaku gently karate chopped Yamamoto on the head, hoping to subtly tell him to let it go. 

“It’s fine, I bought some snacks as well,” Yaku said softly but with a hint of agitation. Yamamoto’s mood immediately shifted, returning to his previously excited self. The conversation was interrupted by Kuroo, who called the team over to start their next match. The matches went by fairly quickly, with the team earning a few more wins. Kuroo jokingly pointed out to Kenma that despite Hinata being there, his team wasn’t doing that well, but Kenma felt too exhausted to retort. Hinata asked Kenma to set for him after the practice matches, but after doing a few and realising he was too exhausted to keep up, Kenma gave up and headed for the classroom he was staying in. He went on his PSP to kill some time until Lev found him and told him food was ready. For some reason, his appetite was even lower than usual and he couldn’t seem to motivate himself to eat. When Yamamoto pointed it out, Kenma forced a smile and said he wanted to leave room for snacks, trying not to alarm his teammates. 

After saying goodnight to everyone else, the team went back to where they’d be sleeping together. Kuroo kept glancing at Kenma over his shoulder, noticing that Kenma looked like his life was being drained from him. It didn’t really surprise him considering he hadn’t seemed to sleep well for days now, but his concern kept growing and he began thinking of how he could get Kenma to sleep. The boys all got dressed into their pyjamas, all of them acting bubbly and cheerful. Whenever someone talked to Kenma, he’d do his best to force a smile on his face and mirror their excitement, but Yaku, Kai and Fukunaga began to notice how fatigued Kenma was. 

Once they all sat down, Yaku, who was sat beside Kenma, leaned in to whisper to him. “Are you okay, Kenma? You don’t have to stay up if you want to sleep.” Kenma looked at Yaku, smiling weakly. 

“I’m fine, don’t worry,” he said unconvincingly. While Kenma was looking away, Yaku looked to Kuroo for answers, but the taller boy seemed to be avoiding eye contact with him. He remembered how Kenma had previously mentioned being worried about Kuroo - Yaku was now beginning to echo his concern. Opposite Yaku in the room was Yamamoto, who was sat cross legged with his hands on his knees. 

“Alright, since it’s pretty late, let’s just play something that doesn’t require packing away,” Yamamoto shouted ecstatically. Yaku gestured at Yamamoto to keep his voice down, so when he spoke again, he did so with a softer voice. “I figured we could play two truths, one lie.” He looked at Kuroo. “You know, for team building,” he said smirking. Kuroo mustered up a smile of approval in response. Yamamoto decided he should go first. 

“Okay first, tigers are my favourite animal. Second, yakisoba buns are my favourite food. Third, my favourite colour is blue.” The team all stared at Yamamoto who folded his arms proudly. He chose completely obvious facts, but they weren’t sure whether they should play along. Kenma, who was so tired he couldn’t think straight, suddenly spoke up. 

“Obviously it’s the third one,” he said with a condescending grin on his face. “You’re way too obvious, Tora.” The team stared at him as they watched him open up a bag of chips, munching on them nonchalantly. Yamamoto pouted, clearly not impressed by Kenma’s attitude. 

“Alright then big shot, why don’t you go next?” Kenma looked up at Yamamoto, smirking as he accepted his challenge. 

“Fine. Let’s see…” Kenma furrowed his brows, trying to think through his fatigue. “My favourite food is apple pie.” He forced more food into his mouth. “I really want to go to sleep right now, and,” he looked up at Kuroo, catching him off guard as he smiled at him. “That day you got me from class and took me to the nurses office, I had a panic attack.” He casually continued to eat snacks as the team looked at one another in confusion. They weren’t sure whether Kenma was messing around or being serious. Having absolutely no clue how to answer, Yaku placed his hand on Kenma’s shoulder. 

“Are you feeling okay? I’m getting worried,” he said, his face greatly troubled. 

“What do you mean? I’m having a blast!” Kenma said, acting uncharacteristically giddy. “Come on, guess already!” His feet twitched excitedly as he smiled at his team, who weren’t displaying his same level of zeal. He then sat still for a moment before he glared at Yamamoto angrily. “You’re the one who was so desperate to play, weren’t you?” He kneeled and began to shuffle towards Yamamoto. He suddenly shoved Yamamoto’s chest, causing him to fall back. “Come on, guess already!” Yamamoto was about to snap back until he looked around and noticed the scared looks on the first years’ faces. Yamamoto looked over to Kuroo and Yaku, hoping they’d help. 

“Come on,” Kuroo said, grabbing Kenma by the arm and pulling him away from Yamamoto. Kenma tried to resist a little, but in his exhausted state, he wasn’t able to put up much of a fight. Yamamoto sat back up, nervously looking at his upperclassmen. Kenma looked very irritated, now avoiding eye contact with everyone. His lack of energy caught up to him and his eyes began to feel heavy. The team quietly watched as Kenma fought the urge to sleep, his head occasionally sinking and jerking back up. Yaku, reading the atmosphere, suddenly spoke up. 

“I think we are all a bit tired from practice, so maybe we should just call it a night.” The team quickly agreed, getting under their bed sheets. Kenma lifted his head up, looking somewhat restless now that the game was over. 

“Hey wait,” he said anxiously. “W-What about the game?” Kuroo looked at him sharply.

“The game is over. Just go to sleep,” he told Kenma bluntly. Yaku looked over at him, ready to tell him off, but Kuroo has already buried his head in his pillow. Kenma turned to Yaku, hoping he would back him up, but Yaku avoided meeting his eyes and got into bed as well. Everyone else was laying down, but Kenma sat there with his leg crossed, his feet now twitching out of nervousness. He reached his hand under his pillow, pulling out his stress toy while no one was looking. He got under his sheets, continuing to squeeze the toy. He tried his best to keep his eyes open, hoping that squeezing the stress toy would stop him from sleeping, but his movements got slower and he gradually fell asleep. 

He once again found himself trapped in the glass box. He instinctively sat down on the couch once again, picking up the controller. He then felt someone sitting down next to him, causing him to flinch in expectation that it was Shirai again. He looked to his side but was surprised to see it was Kuroo, but not in the way he expected. Kuroo was his younger self, which would explain why he didn’t announce his entrance. Either way, Kenma felt at ease, so after sighing top himself, he quietly played games with his friend. 

Suddenly, Kuroo yelped, causing Kenma to quickly turn his head. His whole body trembled in terror as he watched Shirai hold Kuroo by the collar. Kenma tried to crawl forward to help Kuroo, but he was restrained from behind by the other bullies. He quietly watched in fear as Shirai raised his free hand, which brandished a knife. As he motioned his hand downwards, Kenma yelled at him to stop. 

Kenma let out a gasp as his body shot upright. It took him a moment to realise he was now awake. He covered his mouth, trying to muffle his heavy breathing. His heart raced as his body was flooded with adrenal, causing Kenma’s whole body to tremble uncontrollably. He used one hand to pat the floor around him in search of his stress toy, and when he found it, he rapidly squeezed it in an attempt to calm down. Once he has caught his breath, he quietly stood up and went to where his phone was charging, checking his phone. It was around 5am, and despite getting a decent amount of sleep, he still felt exhausted. Fearing that laying down would tempt Kenma back into slumber, he gathered together his makeup and phone, then went to the bathroom. After hiding in a toilet stall for a while to recover more fully from his nightmare, he went out of the stall, splashing water in his face to try and wake himself up, though it didn’t work. He then applied his makeup and went back to the room, returning to his bed and staring at the ceiling while pinching his arm under the sheets to stop himself from falling asleep again.


	11. Turning Against the Team

The rest of the team eventually woke up, each one of them seeming very lethargic. As Kenma faked waking up again, he anxiously scanned the room, coming to the conclusion that he was the cause for everyone’s low mood. He sunk his head, trying not to show his panic. He felt a tap on his shoulder, so he took a breath and looked up. It was Kuroo, telling him that he needed to change. It was clear he had something else he wished to say, but he bit his tongue and stood up to change. Kenma joined him and the team changed in silence. Unable to handle the tense atmosphere, he turned to face everyone. The team looked at him, wondering what it was he wanted to say. Given his mood last night and what he said, they weren’t sure what to expect. 

“Uhm, I’m not sure how to say this but,” Kenma began speaking, his throat closing up a little. “I’m sorry about what happened last night. I’m not sure what I was thinking, but I think I ended up making all of you uncomfortable. I’m sorry.” He sank his head again, trying to hide his face as he tried to hide his despair. He felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. 

“It’s okay, Kenma,” Yaku said in a soft voice. “It’s not your fault. You were just tired, right? I think all of us were. It was a long day after all.” The rest of the team nodded, trying to lift the mood. “But if you need to talk to any of us about something on your mind, please don’t be afraid to do so, okay?” Kenma looked up at Yaku, smiling as he tried to hold back his tears. He nodded, then the team continued to get ready. Kuroo looked over at Kenma, taking notice of the pain behind his eyes, but as he was about to ask if Kenma was okay, the team was told to hurry up by one of the managers, so the team left to head to the gymnasium. 

Kenma was seemingly more tired than before, but he focused his energy on the game and ignored everything else, managing to play effectively. He had applied some makeup under his eyes to try not to raise suspicions with anyone, but some members of his team noticed he still seemed tired. To him practice seemed to drag on for ages. When it was time to eat, he took an onigiri with him and went to his bed, sitting in the room with the lights off. He didn’t have the energy to talk to anyone. He turned on his PSP and used it to distract himself from falling asleep. He suddenly heard a knock on the door, causing him to panic and pause his game. He looked up as Hinata peered from around the door. 

“Hey Kenma, are you okay?” Hinata said smiling. Kenma nodded at him, then resumed his game. “Can I come in?” Hinata said awkwardly. Kenma simply patted the floor next to him, so Hinata jogged over and sat beside Kenma. He quietly watched as Kenma played his game, but somehow Kenma wasn’t too concerned. Hinata normally spoke his mind, so he figured since he didn’t say anything, he just hadn’t noticed something was wrong. Kenma was grateful to not be berated with questions for once. He found comfort in the silence. Just as Kenma was finished a level, Yaku looked into the room and told the two of them that practice was starting up soon. Hinata stood up, ready to go, to which Kenma said he’d join shortly after he had finished the level he was on. Hinata nodded and left promptly. Yaku hesitated by the door, then decided to go back to the gymnasium. Kenma finished the level, placing his PSP into his bag. He quickly checked his phone, reading a few comments on his recent video, then placed his phone back in his pocket and walked back to the gymnasium. 

Having charged his social battery again, Kenma seemingly returned to his normal self. Kuroo asked where he had gone, and though Kenma told him the truth, Kuroo still felt as though there was a hidden reason behind it. 

“Did you not sleep well last night?” Kuroo watched as Kenma pouted and looked away. 

“I guess not, but can you blame me after what happened last night?” He has a mild sharpness to his voice, making Kuroo’s concern for him grow. He understood where Kenma was coming from, but he began to feel a bit restless that Kenma seemed to adamant in refusing to talk to him. After all, they’d been friends for years, so he thought he could be trusted with anything. On the other hand, Kenma thought that he was leaving enough hints for Kuroo to stop prying. After his dream, he felt he couldn’t get Kuroo involved – he didn’t want Kuroo to get hurt because of him. With the differences in motive causing them to clash once again, the feeling of tension between them continued to grow. 

Practice went by as usual, but Kuroo help but notice that Kenma spoke less and didn’t set for him as often. The team chalked it up to a combination of his fatigue and strategising, but Kuroo felt that there was something more beneath the surface. When it came time to eat again, Kenma chose not to hide away again as he didn’t want to concern anyone, but he decided to stay away from Kuroo and sat with Hinata instead, his stress ball in hand as he squeezed it under the table. Because Karasuno was set to go home after they had eaten, no one seemed to question Kenma for sitting with Hinata. Kuroo occasionally glanced over, noticing how talkative he was despite wearing an empty smile. It seemed he was comfortable with Hinata, but he didn’t look happy. 

Kenma went outside, making his way back to the classroom. He felt a cold nip in the air as he looked up to the sky and observed an army of large clouds slowly drifting closer from a distance. He was about to continue to head back, but he was suddenly interrupted by a familiar voice. 

“Kenma, wait,” Kuroo cried out, jogging to catch up to Kenma. All he could see was Kenma’s shadowy back as his friend refused to turn to look him in the eyes. He stayed quiet, prompting Kuroo to continue. “Kenma, you’ve not been yourself. What aren’t you telling me?”

Kenma clenched his fist. “I’ve not been ‘myself’?” He spoke bluntly with an agitated tone, catching Kuroo off guard. He slowly turned around to face Kuroo, the moon casting a shadow on his face as it stood behind him. His eyes had a sharp intensity to them as if they were piercing through Kuroo. “What exactly do you mean by that?”

Kuroo instinctively stepped back a little. He wasn’t used to his expression from Kenma. Sure, he’d been intense before, but never with an underlying rage inside him. After composing himself, Kuroo responded. “You’ve not been sleeping very well and you seem really distant, like you’re trying to hide something.” He then mustered a fake smile, hoping to ease the situation. “Don’t tell me there’s a girl you like?” He hoped his teasing would lighten the tension, but Kenma continued to look discontented, though the harshness in his eyes had lessened a little. 

“Like I’ve been saying,” Kenma said more quietly, looking away from Kuroo. “Everything’s fine.” The two of them stood quietly, unsure of what to say. “I’m going back,” Kenma said as he turned and walked away. Kuroo suddenly ran up to him, grabbing him by the arm and stopping him. Kenma’s hair had fallen over his face, hiding his true expression. 

“Kenma please,” Kuroo spoke, his voice soft as he dropped his cheerful act. “I know you’ve been keeping something from me and I can tell it’s eating away at you. Tell me what’s on your mind – I promise it’ll make you feel better.” He could hear Kenma’s breathing get heavier, and as he was about to open his mouth to talk, Kenma suddenly swung his arm and freed himself from Kuroo’s grasp. He turned his face away from Kuroo. 

“How do you know it’ll make me feel better?” His voice was now shaky as he shouted his words. “You don’t even know what it is or if there even is anything. So why do you keep talking as if you know everything? I don’t need your help, so stop trying to act like my mom!” Kuroo lifted his arm and was about to reach towards Kenma, but his hand was slapped away. Kenma looked up at Kuroo, his eyes lit up with a fury. “I don’t need your help, so just leave me alone!” He then threw his stress toy at the ground in frustration, causing it to rip a little as it hit the paved floor. 

A cold wind swept through the air as the two of them stood there in silence. Kuroo then lifted his head up to look at Kenma. His eyes looked more lifeless and his smile was empty, which caused Kenma shift his feelings of anger to that of confusion. He’d never seen Kuroo with this expression. 

“Okay,” Kuroo said defeatedly. “I’ll stop bothering you. I’m sorry.” He then walked past Kenma to head back to the clubroom, leaving Kenma alone in the dark. He stood there, replaying the situation in his head as he felt the cool of the night embrace him. Kenma wandered lifelessly around the corner of the gymnasium, then leaned up against a wall, tilting his head up to look at the pitch black sky.

‘I did the right thing,’ he thought to himself. ‘This is the only way to stop Kuro from getting hurt.’ His lowered his head and covered his face with his hands as tears began to blur his vision. ‘So why does it feel like I just lost everything?’ He wept into his hands, his chest tightening as he cried to himself. He felt his hands shaking as he closed them tightly into a fist. Suddenly, Kenma had the feeling he was being watched, causing him to hastily pull his hands away from his face and look around frantically. He thought he heard the sound of footsteps, so he went around the corner to investigate, but no one was there. He wiped the tears off of his face, then took a deep breath and walked back to the classroom, unsure of what he was going to say to the rest of his team. 

He stood outside of the door for a second, then opened the door quietly. The team was talking amongst themselves as they packed their bags ready to go home, but as they looked at Kenma entering, the room fell silent. Kenma shuffled over to his bag and began to gather his things, avoiding eye contact with everyone. He felt as though they continued to stare, his mind racing with thoughts, his greatest fear being that Kuroo had told them what happened. 

“Hey Kenma, what took you so long?” Yaku said with a hint of concern in his voice. Kenma looked over at Kuroo, whose eyes were fixed on his phone. Kenma looked away guiltily, then smiled at Yaku. 

“I wanted to go for a little stroll outside to relax myself a little after today’s matches,” he said scratching his arm nervously. Yaku looked over to Kuroo, but he seemed to be avoiding eye contact, which confused Yaku. He looked back at Kenma who had now put his bag over his shoulder and walked towards the door. Yaku looked at Kai, who shrugged at him. Kuroo then also wore his bag, making sure to distance himself from Kenma as they left. The room became extremely uncomfortable as the tension between Kenma and Kuroo spread to them, so they gathered their stuff and went outside without questioning anything. After saying goodbye to the other teams outside of the school, everyone made their way back home. Though Kuroo and Kenma lived next door to one another, they didn’t walk together. Kuroo followed a fair distance behind Kenma. Even on the train, they sat in different carriages. 

When Kenma arrived home, he was disappointed to find the burden he felt hadn’t lifted. He thought that him being home would be a relief, especially since it would give him space to cool down between practice sessions, but he still felt uneasy. Being exhausted as he was, as soon as his head hit his pillow, he passed out. 

Much to his dismay, he was once again placed in the white room, though this time there wasn’t anything to interact with. He felt a tug on his shirt, which caused him to quickly turn around. He looked down and noticed a startled boy by his side. He quickly realised it was his younger self stood next to him, his cheek with a fresh wound on it. 

“Why did you do that?” he said with pained voice. His hand trembled as he held onto the shirt of his older self, looking up at him with glossy eyes. 

“I was trying to protect him,” Kenma replied, looking away with a guilt-ridden face. “If he knew the truth, he’d only blame himself. He’d get hurt.” 

The smaller boy tilted his head. “You thought that hurting him would protect him?” the younger boy asked. Kenma looked over at him, unsure of how to respond. He bowed his head, hiding it from view. 

“It’s better this way,” he said with a tremor in his voice. “He doesn’t need me. I’ll only hurt him. At least this way he’ll only hurt a little and then forget me.” He then lifted his head up and smiled sadly. “Or maybe he’ll come to hate me. Either way…” He turned his head and looked down at his younger self. “At least he won’t have to worry about me anymore.”

His younger self then looked at him with anger, which confused Kenma. “Are you being serious?” Kenma’s eyes widened as he stared at the fragile boy in disbelief. “Can you even hear yourself right now? You’re putting Kuro through all this harsh treatment for what – to protect yourself? How selfish can you be?” Kenma’s expression shifted as he began to feel anxiety fester inside of him. The younger boy then tugged at his shirt again, making Kenma slowly look at him with terror in his eyes. “Look at what you did to him.” He pointed ahead of him, so Kenma reluctantly looked to where he was being directed. What he saw caused him to desperately covered his mouth with his hands to stop himself from screaming.

Stood in the empty space was a young Kuroo, and though his back was turned away from Kenma, he could see that Kuroo was covered in cuts and bruises, more beaten up than young Kenma. He gradually turned round to reveal himself more. His clothes were ripped and his hair was a mess, but worst of all was his face. He had several marks and gashes on his face, and though his eyes were lifeless, he still had a stream of tears rolling down his face. The despair on his face almost caused Kenma to throw up as he covered his mouth and cried with his eyes closed. Just when he didn’t think he could take any more, he opened his eyes and noticed the dark cloud closing in around him. The giggling and murmuring returned, the volume causing Kenma to move his hands to cover his ears, screaming in terror to try and mask the noises that grew louder and louder. 

Kenma shot up in his bed. He wiped the sweat from his forehead then clutched his chest, each breath he took feeling strained. Once he regained his composure, he looked to his side to see Kuroo’s bed, but it was empty. He looked around the classroom he was in and realised he was the only one on the team still there. He stood up, quickly getting changed into his uniform, then hurried out to the gymnasium. He paused at the door, looking at his teammates who were all laughing and smiling together. Kenma shyly walked up to them, but no one noticed him. 

“Kuro, we need to talk,” he said softly, but his friend didn’t notice him. Kenma frowned, slightly annoyed that he was being ignored. “Come on, this isn’t funny.” He anxiously reached out to Kuroo, but he almost lost his balance as his hand phased through him. He looked at his shaking hand, confused about what just happened. He once again went to touch Kuroo, but his hand passed though him. Kenma looked up at his teammates who continued to laugh joyously. The laughing echoed in his mind and he fearfully took steps back. His eyes began to fill with tears as he weakly muttered his friends’ names, hoping that one of them would take notice of him. Once he realised his attempts were futile, he dropped to his knees, allowing his tears to fall freely down his face as he stared at his team having fun without him, looking happier than he had ever seen them.

Kenma’s eyes slowly opened, filling him with a sense of deja vu as he realised he was waking up. He sat up, then pinched his cheek – he was definitely awake this time. He felt completely exhausted, but he didn’t seem to care today. He looked around the room, remembering that he was at home. Turning onto his stomach, he lifted his pillow to try and grab his stress toy, but after realising it wasn’t there, he remembered the events of last night and how he’d thrown it and left it on the ground at school. He sighed quietly, then stood up and grabbed his makeup and phone, making his way to the bathroom. He applied the makeup, and upon noticing how lifeless his expression was, he pulled the corners of his mouth up with his fingers, trying to force a smile. After blankly staring into the mirror for a short while, he returned to his room, sluggishly getting back into his bed and laying in his back, his hands resting on his stomach above the covers. He stared blankly at the ceiling as time dragged on, patiently waiting for his alarm to sound to start the day.


	12. Bad Ending?

A few days had passed. The team had gotten together for a few practices, but everyone acted as though things were normal. Kuroo did his best to seem fine, successfully fooling the team into thinking things were okay. He would walk home with Kenma, but they wouldn’t speak to one another, nor would they sit with one another once they were on the train. It was uncomfortable, but without even discussing it, they’d both reached the conclusion that being obvious about their distancing from each other would only worry the team.

It was now time to head to Shinzen High for the second half of the training camp. When the team arrived, they were directed to the classroom they’d be staying in and were surprised to find Kenma already there, dressed in his jersey and smiling gently at his phone with dark shadows under his eyes. Yaku approached him, asking why he was there before everyone else. He responded by saying that he had arrived early and was led to the classroom to settle in. The smile on his face should have put Yaku‘s concerns to rest, but for some reason it made him feel uneasy. As the team went to leave the classroom after changing, Yaku turned to see Lev stood next to Kenma’s bag for some reason. He called for the tall boy to stop prying, which made Lev awkwardly turn and jog out of the classroom. Something about today felt ominous to Yaku, but he concluded it was just him being paranoid. 

As Kenma was talking to the other second years, Yaku chatted to Kuroo and Kai, but something about Kuroo seemed off. He was still cracking jokes, but they seemed forced as if he was trying to hide his true feelings. He had a similar suspicion about Kenma for a while, but he hadn’t noticed until now that Kuroo was now also acting strange. The practice matches started and the team played as normal, but Yaku observed a more serious expression on both Kenma and Kuroo’s faces, and unlike they usually would, neither of them initiated a high five after scoring a point. During one of their time outs for a match against Karasuno, Yaku approached Kenma. 

“Hey, is everything between you and Kuroo okay?” His face had concern written all over it, but when Kenma turned to look at him, he couldn’t help but notice Kenma’s seemingly oblivious expression. He looked over at Kuroo, then back to Yaku. 

“I think so. Why, did he say something to you?” Seeing Kenma act so relaxed made Yaku anxious. He couldn’t prove it, but he felt as though Kenma was lying to him. 

“Well, it’s just…” Yaku tried to gather his thoughts, unsure of what exactly to say. “It just seems like there’s some sort of tension between the two of you. You said you noticed something off about Kuroo a little while ago, right? It just seems that today neither of you are talking to one another. Actually, you’ve both been kind of off for the past few days now that I think about it. Kuroo hasn’t really mentioned you at all in conversation and he normally never shuts up about you. It almost seems like you’re avoiding each other.” He placed his hand on Kenma’s shoulder. “If there’s something you need to talk about, please tell me. I want to help. I hate seeing you two like this.”

Kenma’s face tensed up for a brief moment, but then he smiled at Yaku, trying to hide his true feelings. “I’m fine, don’t worry. Maybe Kuro is just feeling tired, but I don’t notice anything wrong with him.” Kenma’s expression filled Yaku with fear, but before he could insist, the team was called to resume the match. 

Kenma watched curiously from the other side of the net as he noticed that Hinata was on edge around Kageyama, missing most of his spikes, which was unusual for him. He didn’t wish to pry since, from personal experience, he figured doing so would add fuel to the flame, so he decided to quietly observe. He looked to his side as the ball drifted up in the air after being saved by Kuroo. He positioned himself under where the ball would fall, then jumped as it got closer. His hands made contact with the ball as he thrusted his hands towards Lev, but was shocked to see that the ball did not go in front of him. He glanced behind himself as the ball dropped to the floor. He turned to look at the team, who stared at him with a bewildered expression. 

“I’m sorry, I’m not entirely sure what happened,” Kenma said nervously as he walked a little closer to the team. Just as Yaku was about to speak, Lev walked up in front of Kenma, towering over him with a frown on his face. 

“Did you do that on purpose?” he said angrily, making Kenma flinch. Kenma’s face darkened a little as he furrowed his brows. 

“What are you talking about? Why would I give the opponent a point on purpose?”

Lev then smiled menacingly at Kenma. “I don’t know, maybe you were afraid to chip a nail?” Kenma raised an eyebrow, unsure of where the conversation was headed. “Or maybe you got a bit of makeup in your eyes?”

Kenma felt his heart drop. He looked over at his teammates who were exchanging looks with one another. Looking back at Lev, he shakily responded, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Lev then chuckled a little. “Come on, Kenma. I saw the makeup poking out of your bag. My sister uses the same brand, so I knew exactly what it was.” Kenma began shaking a little, though he couldn’t tell if it was out of anger or fear – perhaps it was both. Lev continued to smirk, then pushed Kenma in the chest, causing him to fall down. He kept his head lowered, allowing his hair to cover his face. Lev hesitated for a moment, then had a look of realisation. “Oh wow,” he said smugly. 

“What do you want?” Kenma said in a monotone voice, trying not to display any amount of feeling. 

“You really do look like Sadako, huh?” The whole team fell silent. Yaku then walked towards Lev, positioning himself between Lev and Kenma. His face cold and serious, to which Lev gave him an innocent look of curiosity. 

“Where did you hear about that?” Yaku asked bluntly. 

“I heard someone from the basketball club mention a rumour and they said that it was someone from our club.” Lev tilted his head. “Why do you seem so serious all of a sudden? It’s just a silly rumour, isn’t it?”

“Apologise. Now.” Yaku refused to look up at Lev, doing his best not to snap. 

“But why should- “

“Apologise!” Yaku yelled, drawing the attention of some of the other teams. He looked up at Lev with a clenched jaw and shaky fists by his side. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder and turned his head hastily expecting it to be Kuroo, but it was Kenma. He smiled softly at Yaku. 

“It’s okay, Yaku. I’m okay. So please calm down.” Yaku’s body had relaxed, but he stared at Kenma concerned. Kenma then looked at Lev with a serious expression, then he bowed. “I’m sorry for not getting the ball to you. I won’t make the same mistake.” He then lifted his head and walked back into position. The team once again went silent. Yaku looked over to Kuroo, then furrowed his brows when he saw that he had been looking away the whole time. Although he wished to snap at him, he realised he was making the other team wait, so he left it alone for the time being. 

After the match, Yaku tried to double check on Kenma, but he continued to smile and insist he was okay. Yaku watched as Kuroo left the gymnasium and he decided to chase after him. Meanwhile, Fukunaga approached Hinata, looking at the ginger boy with a seemingly blank expression. 

“Kenma is upset,” Fukunaga said, then bowed and walked back over to his team. Hinata scrunched his face up, not entirely sure what to make of the situation. He looked at Kenma who was smiling as he talked to Yamamoto. He wasn’t sure what Fukunaga meant, but he kept the thought in his mind as he went about his business. 

Kuroo walked down the hallway of the school to go to the bathroom, but he stopped once he heard what sounded like the footsteps of someone running. He turned around and saw Yaku sprinting up to him. He took a few deep breaths, then looked up at Kuroo with creased brows. 

“What was that all about?” he asked with a hint of frustration. 

“What do you mean?” Kuroo said as he smiled nonchalantly. Yaku’s face became more tense as he tried to control his temper. 

“Back then, you ignored the whole situation between Kenma and Lev. You didn’t even ask Kenma if he was okay. Why? What happened between you two?” He stared up at Kuroo, who’s face had become less cheerful. 

“Kenma doesn’t need my help,” he replied looking away from Yaku. “Besides, he seemed perfectly fine to me.”

Yaku grabbed Kuroo’s shirt. “What on earth are you saying? He clearly wasn’t okay! He was faking his smile to seem okay, but I know he isn’t. You know he isn’t! Why aren’t you doing anything?” Kuroo suddenly grabbed Yaku’s wrist, tightly gripping it. 

“If I could have done something, don’t you think I would have?” Kuroo yelled with a pain behind his voice. Yaku instinctively let go of Kuroo’s shirt, looking up at the taller boy whose head was lowered as he looked away. “Kenma doesn’t need me, okay?” Yaku stood there silently as Kuroo turned and walked away. He wasn’t entirely sure what happened between them, but he also didn’t know of a way to fix it. After standing in place for a few seconds, he defeatedly walked back towards the gymnasium with a heavy heart. 

When he returned, he was surprised to see that Akane and Alisa were with the team. He walked over and found out that the two of them were bored and decided to crash the training camp as a surprise, so they arranged to help the other managers in exchange for being able to stay. Alisa mentioned that they had been invited by a member of the team to come, which was followed by Akane desperately trying to get her to stop talking before she could say who invited them. Yaku assumed that it was Lev or Yamamoto that invited them, but was confused that they refused to admit who it really was, but he had too much on his mind to care. 

After a while Kuroo returned, to which Kenma excused himself from the group and made his way to the bathroom. When he entered the bathroom, he looked at himself in the mirror for a moment, then quickly looked away and went into one of the cubicles, curling up in a ball to compose himself. He heard someone else enter the bathroom, turning on the tap and letting in run. Kenma tried not to let curiosity get the better of him, but after waiting for a few seconds, he quietly stood up, turning his phone camera on and pointing it upwards from under the door. He was surprised to see that it was one of Karasuno’s players, splashing water in his wash and glumly looking at himself in the mirror. He sighed, then left the bathroom, though Kenma decided to think nothing of it. He then decided to finish up and return to the team, acknowledging that the longer he hid, the more concerned his teammates would become. 

It was now time for lunch and Kenma was nowhere to be seen. Yaku asked around, but Alisa chimed in, explaining that she has seen him and Akane walk somewhere together after getting food. He wasn’t exactly sure what was happening, but he was glad to know that Kenma wasn’t alone at least. 

Akane and Kenma sat around the corner of the gymnasium, quietly eating a rice ball. Kenma didn’t really mind since he viewed her like a younger sister, and Akane viewed him as an older brother - the two of them had come to trust one another recently. Akane then broke the silence by speaking. 

“So what happened?” she asked bluntly without even looking at Kenma. 

“What do you mean?” he replied, trying not to give anything away. 

She looked up at Kenma. “I can tell something is wrong. My brother told me you had a fight with Lev-kun or something.” She patiently waited for moment, then looked away and hugged her legs. “You don’t have to talk about it if it makes you uncomfortable though.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to talk about it,” he said staring at his half eaten onigiri. “I just don’t think you’d understand.” 

“Because I’m too young?” she said slightly offended. “Even if I can’t understand, that doesn’t mean that talking to me about it is futile. It might feel better talking to a third party of sorts.” Kenma looked over at Akane. He didn’t want to admit it, but she acted more mature that he’d expect of someone her age. He turned his head away again, dropping his expression. 

“Lev told everyone about the makeup,” he said sadly, then mirrored Akane and curled up into a ball. 

“Lev-kun did? How did he find out?” 

“He saw the makeup in my bag. It was my fault for being sloppy about hiding it, but the room was dark when I put it in my bag.” Kenma tightly gripped his legs. 

Akane looked up to the sky. “Is that all?” Kenma looked at her through his hair. “I don’t wish to pry, but it seems as though there’s something else on your mind.”

Kenma looked away again, trying to decide what to tell her. “I’d rather not talk about it if that’s okay.”

Akane smiled gently at Kenma. “Of course it’s okay,” she said softly. She then stood up and warmly looked at Kenma. “But if you ever need to talk to someone about anything, then I’d be willing to listen.” She stepped out of the shadows and looked over her shoulder at Kenma. “We should probably head back before the practice matches started or people might start to worry about us.”

Kenma reluctantly stood up and followed Akane back to the gymnasium. As he walked back, he quietly looked at the floor, remembering how he had thrown his stress toy in a similar area back at his own school. He entered the gymnasium glumly, standing at the door as he looked at his team from a distance, observing at their melancholy expressions. Kenma blamed himself for atmosphere that loomed over the team - he was tired of making them concerned. He took a deep breath, then as he was about to make his way to join them, he felt someone tap his shoulder, causing him to flinch.

“Hey Kenma!” Hinata said beaming. “That was a fun match earlier!” Despite having problems of his own, Hinata seemed to naturally pull off a smile and light up the room. Kenma felt a bit nervous, unsure of how someone could be filled with such positivity despite things not being okay. He was almost jealous of Hinata for it. 

Kenma smiled. “It was, wasn’t it?” The two of them quietly stood there for a moment, not sure where to take the conversation. Kenma then pointed to his team. “I have to go back and get ready for my match.” Hinata nodded understandingly, then waved as he jogged away from Kenma to return to his team. 

The team tried to act as normal as Kenma approached, but everyone seemed to be on edge. Kenma took notice that even Yaku seemed to be pensive. Despite the vague gloom, the team performed in their matches as usual, though they were more serious with their plays. Even the oblivious Bokuto noticed that something was up, though after asking Akaashi about it and him not knowing the reason why, he stopped reading into it, figuring they were just having an off day. After practice was over, the team seemed eager to disperse and talk to other teams. Kenma sat alone on a chair, typing something out on his phone. Hinata approached him, causing him to nervously hide his phone in the pocket of his jacket. Hinata took a seat next to him and asked him for advice on spiking. Since it wasn’t his area of expertise, he suggested asking someone like Kuroo instead. Hinata excitedly agreed, then ran off to find Kuroo, leaving Kenma alone again. 

Kenma looked up from his phone as he saw someone run out of the gymnasium in a hurry. Since he had nothing else to do, he stood up and jogged over to the door, peering around it and observing what appeared to be an argument between two Karasuno players. He recognised one as being the blonde middle blocker and he had a look of realisation when he noticed the other boy was the same one who had been in the bathroom earlier that evening. After they had finished shouting at one another, the taller of the two smiled and walked off, leaving the other boy by himself. He then turned and noticed Kenma staring at him from a distance. He walked back to the gymnasium, smiling awkwardly and placing his hand behind his neck. 

“Did you see all of that?” he asked shyly. Kenma took a moment to gather his thoughts, then nervously looked away from the freckled boy. 

“Yeah, but I didn’t really hear what you said since you were facing away from me,” Kenma replied with a gentle look on his face. “It must be nice to be able to talk openly to your friend,” he added, flashing a bittersweet smile. He then turned and walked away, leaving a bewildered Yamaguchi by the door. He sat back down, pulling out his phone and continuing to type something out. Although he wanted to go back to the classroom where his PSP was, he also recognised that some members of his team would be there already and he wanted to avoid them as much as possible. 

After a while, a group of students walked into gymnasium, Kuroo included. Kenma glanced up at Kuroo as he walked past. The two of them made brief eye contact with one another before looking away hastily. When Kenma lifted his head up again, he noticed Akaashi sat down on a chair by himself, his face in his hands. Kenma curiously stood up from his seat, then walked over to the other side of the gymnasium, taking a seat next to Akaashi. 

“Everything okay?” Kenma said softly. Akaashi looked up at him, then sat upright, looking away again. 

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just overthinking some things,” Akaashi replied almost robotically. Kenma looked at him quizzically, hoping he’d elaborate. Akaashi started fiddling his fingers, then continued to talk. “I just realised that Bokuto-san is an incredibly talented player, and unlike someone like Kageyama, I don’t have the skills to match his talent.”

Kenma quietly sat beside him, then smiled contentedly. “You’re complicating things,” he said in a gentle voice. “Sure, you may not be like Kageyama, but you’re you. You’re talented in your own ways. You’re able to read people remarkably well, which helps you to strategise during games. You know your teammates well enough to know how to best accommodate their skills. And besides,” Kenma said, then smiled heartily at Akaashi. “You’re probably the only person in the world who can handle Bokuto.” 

Akaashi looked at Kenma in silent admiration, then smiled confidently. “You’re a remarkable person, Kozume.” Kenma flinched, then nervously pinched his hair. “Something tells me you’re the type of person to see the best in others but not yourself. I hope one day you’ll be able to see your own value.” Unsure of what to say, Kenma thanked Akaashi and excused himself. He realised that he would at some point have to return to the classroom, so he decided now was as good a time as any to do so. As he walked back, he felt a pain in his chest. He knew Akaashi was trying to be kind, but somehow his compliment made Kenma more insecure as his brain worked to convince him Akaashi was wrong, that he was lying. 

When Kenma arrived, most of the team was already there. He quietly walked in, avoiding eye contact and quickly sitting down on his futon. Kuroo had his headphones in as he watched videos on his phone, deliberately shutting himself out from everyone. Surprisingly, even Yaku seemed to be avoiding Kenma’s gaze, seemingly perturbed over something. Eventually, the whole team got settled in, hastily going to sleep. Kenma stared blankly at the ceiling, contemplating everything that had happened over the course of the day. 

After a while, once he was confident everyone was asleep, he sat up and took his phone out from under his pillow. He opened his message drafts and read through an unsent message he’d been working on. It read: 

‘Hello. If you’re receiving this message, then I just wanted to apologise. I know I’ve become a burden to you all recently, and for that I’m sorry. Seeing how I’ve singlehandedly made all of you miserable hurts me more than you can know, and despite my best efforts, it seems I cannot fix this mess I’ve made. I’ve come to the realisation that the only way to correct this error is for me to be erased from the picture. Thank you for letting me into your life. I’m sorry for everything.’ 

Kenma’s finger hovered over the send button, but he swallowed his fears and hit send, tucking his phone back under his pillow. He looked over at Kuroo for the last time, smiling softly at him as his friend slept peacefully. He then stood up slowly, creeping towards the door and trying not to wake anyone up. He walked down the hallway, stopping for a moment to look out of the window to watch as rain trickled down in. Oddly enough, the weather forecast didn’t mention rain, but Kenma sighed as he thought about how fitting the weather was for the day he had. He made his way up a flight of stairs to the roof, then twisted the door knob. 

The door creaked opened and Kenma made his way outside, the wind immediately breaking the eery silence of the hallways. Feeling the cold rain land on his skin and cascade down, he walked forward lifelessly, his brain emptying of thoughts. He stopped as he reached the railing, watching as a small cloud formed with every breath he took. He calmly gripped the railing, taking a moment to stare at the moon and admire its phosphorescence as it lit up the otherwise dark sky. He smiled gently, closing his eyes as a single tear rolled down his cheek. 

“I’m sorry. Goodbye.”


	13. Restart

Kenma listened to the quiet whistle of the wind, the pattering of the rain. He became hyper aware of everything, causing anxiety to fester in his heart. He opened his eyes, then looked down. His vision got blurry as his eyes filled with tears. He wanted to jump, but every muscle in his body was stopping him. Tightening his grip on the railing, he took a deep breath, preparing to take action in one fell swoop. He stepped one foot up onto the railing. 

“Kenma!” a voice cried out, causing Kenma to flinch and swing his head around. He grew fearful as he saw Kuroo and Hinata standing on the roof with him. 

“Kuro? What are you doing here?” Kenma said shakily. He was certain Kuroo was asleep, and even if he wasn’t, he surely hated Kenma. So why was he here?

Kuroo stood there for a moment, looking at his friend standing a fair distance away from him. The moon lit up Kenma’s silhouette, making Kuroo notice the rain had exposed scars on his face and arms, which looked like they’d been there for a while. Kuroo’s suspicions were correct, but he couldn’t have imagined the severity of the injuries Kenma was trying to cover up. Worst of all though was the look on Kenma’s face. He had shadows under his eyes from his lack of sleep and his eyes were red and puffy as though he’d been crying. An intense look of pain was on his face as he desperately held onto the railing with a shaky yet firm grip. It seemed that Kenma was pumped full of adrenaline, so Kuroo concluded that if his friend decided to jump, he wouldn’t make it in time to stop him. He needed to talk Kenma out of this. 

“Kenma, what’s wrong?” Kuroo asked stepping out into the moonlight, his stomach turning as he tried to figure out how best to support his friend. 

“Nothing is wrong, Kuro,” Kenma said, giving Kuroo an empty smile. “Or at least it won’t be for long.”

Kuroo took a shaky breath, trying to collect his jumbled thoughts. “How long have you been feeling like this?”

Kenma’s body tensed up, his smile becoming more forced. “Please Kuro, just let me do this. I just want you all to be happy.”

“Well, my happiness comes from knowing you’re okay. I want you to be happy, Kenma. So please, tell me what’s wrong,” Kuroo said, pushing back his hesitation. 

“You have no idea what you’re saying!” Kenma yelled, lowering his face to cover his pained expression. Tears began to run down his face again. “I’ve tried being happy, Kuro, but I can’t. I just can’t! So what’s the point of dragging all of you down with me?”

Kuroo made a fist with his hands, trying to remain as calm as he could in order to support Kenma. “What makes you think you’re dragging us down?”

Kenma clenched his chest, refusing to raise his head. His head became agitated as his thoughts spiralled out of control. “Don’t play dumb, Kuro,” Kenma said weakly. He suddenly lifted his head up, exposing his tear-soaked face. “I know that everyone has been gloomy because of me! The only reason Lev snapped at me today was because I’ve been causing unnecessary tension among the team. It’s my fault for being so weak. And you…” Kenma stared at Kuroo, who seemed to be holding back his nerves. The image of the injured Kuroo from his dream flashed in Kenma’s mind as he looked at him. “I hurt you so much,” Kenma continued. “I thought I was helping you by pushing you away, but I ended up hurting you instead. I’ve burdened you this whole time, making you worry about me and look out for me, so I thought that if I stopped you, you’d be happy. But I only hurt you more! No matter what I do, I hurt you! That’s why I should…”

“Kenma,” Kuroo said, taking advantage of the brief silence. He then smiled gently, the moon brightening his face. “You could never be a burden to me. Relying on others isn’t a hassle. I’m always happy to help you – you’re like family to me after all. You’re the one who taught me to come out of my shell and supported me in playing volleyball, even when you didn’t have to. I feel safe in your company and when you’re by my side, I feel like anything is possible. You’re a selfless individual who always tries his best for others, even if you pretend not to care. When I see a smile on your face, it fills me with joy. Knowing that I’ve helped you or made your day just a little better is the best feeling in the world. You being happy is my happiness, Kenma.”

Kenma’s hands trembled as he strengthened his grip on his shirt, looking away from Kuroo briefly. He wanted to free Kuroo of his burden, so why didn’t he seem miserable all of a sudden? Just a few hours ago, the two of them couldn’t even look each other in the eyes. But now as Kuroo stared at Kenma, he smiled softly like he had before. Kenma focused his attention back on his friend, who had taken a few steps closer to him, but was still a fair distance away. 

“There’s a reason you’re still here, Kenma. A reason why you seem so conflicted.” Kenma felt anxious as he listened to Kuroo’s words, causing him to look away again fearfully. “Something’s stopping you. What is it?”

Kenma scanned his mind for reasons, but in all honesty, he already knew what was stopping him. He looked at Kuroo, his body relaxing a little. 

“You,” Kenma responded softly. Kuroo flinched a little, not expecting the answer received. He thought that he’d hurt Kenma, that he put his friend on the roof, but hearing that he was the reason for Kenma still being here, he felt his eyes begin to water. “You were my first real friend, Kuro. You stuck by my side, even though I’m an awkward mess. You constantly check to make sure I’m okay. You understand me better than anyone else.” Kenma looked down again, trying to push past the tears to continue speaking. “Even after everything I did to you, even when I tried to push you away, you still came up here to stop me. I’ve taken advantage of your kindness for so long, and after our argument, I thought you’d never want to speak to me again. But you’re here…” 

Kenma began to weep, unable to talk. Kuroo stepped closer to Kenma, now being within arms reach of him. The latter continued to look at the ground, taking notice of Kuroo’s feet entering his vision. 

“You’re my best friend, Kenma. Of course I came to stop you. I’m not going to let one silly argument take what we have away. So please…” Kuroo reached out his hand, warmly smiling at Kenma as he choked back his tears. Kenma slowly looked up at his hand, then met eyes with his friend again. “Come down and let me help you.”

Kenma stared at his friend for a moment whose face was expressing genuine kindness. He then looked down at the hand that has been extended to him. He focused on this as his brain began to clear itself of thoughts. Kenma gripped the railing tighter for a moment, then gingerly let go, his hand drifting steadily towards Kuroo’s. As his hand got closer, Kenma stepped down from the railing, but his legs gave way. His hands gripped onto Kuroo’s forearms as he fell, to which Kuroo quickly fell to his knees to ease Kenma’s dissent. Kenma tightly held onto his friend, his face directed at the floor. He began sobbing, crying out as he emptied out the pain from his heart. Kuroo simply knelt in front of him, allowing his friend to unload his pent up feelings. It felt as though a weight had been lifted from Kuroo’s chest as he realised Kenma was now safe.

After regaining some strength, Kenma lifted his head up. Looking over Kuroo’s shoulder, he noticed Hinata standing there, his face displaying a mix of relief and tension. Kenma let go of Kuroo, then open his arms out and smiled at Hinata. The ginger boys eyes shimmered, then he ran over to his friend, dropping to his knees and embracing Kenma. They both buried their faces in each other’s shoulders, crying as they gripped the back of other person’s shirt. Kuroo smiled gently at them, thankful that Kenma was finally being true to his feelings. The two of them eventually stop crying, pulling away from one another and smiling peacefully. Kuroo then stood up, offering his hand out to the two of them. They both took his hand, getting on their feet. 

“Let’s go,” Kuroo said gently. Kenma nodded and the three of them walked off the roof. Once they reached the bottom of the stairs, Hinata said he would fetch towels for the three of them, then ran off. The other two walked back to the classroom where the rest of the team was, but as Kuroo was about to open the door, he felt a strong tug at his shirt. He looked over his shoulder to see Kenma with his head facing down, his body trembling a little. Kuroo realised that he needed to allow a bit of time to prepare his friend to be ready to face the team, so Kuroo sat down by the door with his legs extended outwards. He then patted the floor next to him, so Kenma sat down beside him, bringing his knees up to his chest and hugging them. Hinata came back, handing the two of them towels. Reading the situation, he offered to go into the classroom and explain the situation to everyone else. Kenma accepted this offer, thanking Hinata for explaining things on his behalf. Kenma and Kuroo sat quietly for a moment as they dried themselves with the towels. Once they’d dried off a little, they let the towel hang around their necks, then they both silently stared at the ground. 

“So how did you know?” Kenma said timidly. Upon glancing over and noticing Kuroo’s perplexed look, Kenma elaborated. “How did you know to come find me I mean?” Kuroo stared at Kenma for a moment, then smiled as he looked away. 

“Surprisingly it was Chibi-chan that brought me to you,” Kuroo said with a slight pain behind his eyes. “He burst into the room and shook me awake. He had the most terrified look on his face, saying something was wrong and I needed to come find you. I hate that I almost decided to roll over and ignore him.” Kuroo looked down, his face becoming guilt ridden. He then tilted his head back and looked up to the ceiling, smiling sadly. “He got mad at me, then finally yelled at me and asked if I’d seen your message.” Kenma grew a little anxious, curling himself up a little more tightly. “Once I found out about that, I practically shot up and ran with him to the roof. When I saw you still standing there…” Kuroo choked up a little, covering his face with his hand. Kenma looked up at him worriedly, but Kuroo took a deep breath, wiped his eyes and then smiled at Kenma. “I was so relieved to see you still alive.” Kenma’s eyes widened, his eyes welling up again. Upon seeing this, Kuroo teared up as well, a sight that was rare to see. He then laughed a little as he dried his tears. “Look at you making me all emotional!”

“S-Sorry Kuro,” Kenma said sadly, to which Kuroo began to ruffle his hair. 

“What are you apologising for? There’s nothing wrong with crying.” Kenma felt a small weight from his heart lift as he heard those words. All this time he assumed he was weak for crying, but seeing his friend do so without shame made him feel more relaxed. Kuroo returned his hand to his side and the two of them went silent again. After wiping his teary eyes and composing himself, Kuroo spoke up again. “So do you want to talk about it? I’m all ears if you do.”

Kenma looked up at Kuroo, hesitating for a moment. But after everything that has happened, he felt he owed it to Kuroo to tell him what he had been hiding. At first he wanted to only briefly mention what he’d gone through, but he soon began going into more detail, pouring his heart out. He told Kuroo everything – how he was bullied in his third year of middle school, how he had gotten all of his scars, how he felt anxious and depressed, how insecure he was. Kuroo quietly listened to his friend, allowing him to vent to him without interruption. Whenever Kenma would get caught on his words or would start to cry, Kuroo would patiently smile at him, giving him time to collect his thoughts. Eventually Kenma had said everything he could think of saying. He glumly looked at the floor, waiting for Kuroo to respond. His mind filled with thoughts on how his friend would react, fully expecting his friend to yell at him and reject him. To his surprise, Kuroo smiled warmly and placed his hand on Kenma’s shoulder, gently gripping it.

“Thank you for telling me all of that, Kenma. I know it wasn’t easy to talk about that. And I’m sorry you had to go through all of that. I may not be able to fix your problems, but please know that I’ll always be here to support you whenever you need me. And together we will get through this. I’ll help you take the steps you need to get to a more stable place, a place where you can feel happy again. No matter how long it takes or how hard the journey is, I’ll stay by your side.” Kuroo removed his hand from Kenma’s shoulder, then looked over at his friend, who looked at the floor with a bittersweet smile on his face. 

“I wish it was always like this,” he said, gently stroking his thumb against his arm. 

“What do you mean?” Kuroo asked, raising his eyebrow.

“I mean I wish I had just been open like this from the start. This peaceful atmosphere, this honesty - maybe things wouldn’t have gotten this bad. I just didn’t want to bother you with my trivial concerns.”

Kuroo looked at Kenma with a concerned expression, then he grinned playfully. “You could never be a bother to me, Kenma. You’re like a little brother to me. And maybe things would have been different if you’d spoken sooner, but that isn’t important right now. The important thing is I know now and I can help you from here on out.” Kuroo lowered his head. “You’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met. There’s no one in my life more important to me than you.” As he finished speaking, he felt something on his shoulder. He looked over to see Kenma fast asleep with his head rested against Kuroo. He chuckled to himself a little. “Always sleeping at the most important of times, eh Kenma?” Noticing a single tear rolling down Kenma’s cheek, he brushed it away. He then gently propped Kenma’s head against the wall, getting in front of Kenma and lifting him onto his back. He walked towards the door, then slid it open. 

When he walked in, everyone turned to stare at him. There was a mix of emotions in the room – some looked guilty, some looked pensive, some looked frustrated. Yaku was sat facing the door with Hinata sat in front of him. He had tears in his eyes as he looked up at Kuroo. He felt his heart drop as he saw Kenma peacefully asleep on Kuroo’s back, leading him to cover his mouth as he began to cry again. He then stood up, shakily making his way towards Kuroo. He began weakly punching Kuroo in the chest as he cried. 

“I knew it! I knew something was wrong! Both of you were acting so strange – I knew he wasn’t okay!” He then stopped jabbing at Kuroo, slowly resting his head on Kuroo, his face pointing at the floor. “I failed to stop this! This is all my fault!” Kuroo looked down at Yaku with pain in his eyes. He desperately wished to comfort his friend, but he couldn’t do anything. Shibayama made his way towards the two of them, placing his hands on Yaku’s shoulders. 

“S-senpai, maybe we should continue this discussion when Kenma-san has been put to bed?” Yaku lifted his head to look at Shibayama, then wiped his eyes and moved out of Kuroo’s way. Kuroo walked over to Kenma’s bed, crouching down and carefully laying Kenma down. He pulled the covers over him and took a moment to look at his friend. Kenma’s eyes were red from crying so much, but he looked peaceful now. Kuroo turned to the team as they all looked at him. He got on his knees, then suddenly placed his hands out in front of him, bowing his head before the team who were in shock. 

“I’m sorry for making you all worried,” he said in a formal tone. Yaku had a serious look on his face. He walked in front of Kuroo, kneeling in front of him. 

“Kuroo, lift your head,” Yaku said bluntly. Kuroo hesitated for a moment, then did as his friend requested. Yaku stared at his fellow third year for a moment, then lunged at Kuroo, wrapping his arms around him. “Thank you, Kuroo. For saving Kenma.” Kuroo sat in shock for a second, then reciprocated Yaku’s hug. 

“If it wasn’t for Chibi…no, Hinata, then I wouldn’t have even known Kenma needed saving.” The two of them remained in each other’s arms for a while, then pulled away. They both smiled at one another in relief, then looked up at Hinata. They stood up and the rest of the team gathered around them, looking at one another with the same thought in their mind. They lowered their heads in front of Hinata, then in unison, quietly spoke. 

“Thank you for saving him.” Hinata stood silently, his eyes filling with tears as he smiled joyfully. More than anything, he was glad that Kenma was okay. 

After a little while, Hinata left to head back to his room, asking the team to make sure Kenma was okay and exchanging a glance with Fukunaga before he walked out the door. At Yaku’s request, Shibayama went to fetch the key to the classroom, locking the door after he came back in just in case. After talking among themselves and comforting one another, the team eventually realised it had gotten really late and, despite everything, they would have to wake up for practice tomorrow, so they settled in to sleep. Though most of the team managed to sleep fairly quickly out of exhaustion, some simply laid in their futons with their eyes wide open, contemplating things quietly. 

Kuroo laid one his side, watching as Kenma slept, his mind filled with a mixture of thoughts. Suddenly, he heard Kenma whimpering. He calmly stood up and walked to his bag, reaching down into the bottom of it. He pulled out a cat plushie - the same one Kenma had gifted him at the present exchange - then sat back down on his futon, placing the plushie on Kenma’s open hand. Kenma instinctively wrapped his hand around the plushie like a child, then pulled it into his chest, curling into a ball as he held it and smiling peacefully. Kuroo waited for a while to make sure his friend was comfortable, then got back under his sheets. After some time, Kuroo slowly closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.


End file.
